Objective: To develop a practical ultrasonography-guided injection approach to anesthetic blockade of the femoral nerve in calves and to assess the method's accuracy. Animals: 13 cadavers of 4-week-old male Holstein Friesian calves. Procedures: Detailed topographic and anatomic cross-sectional evaluation of the relevant topography in 3 cadavers was performed to identify optimal injection approaches to the femoral nerve. Three approaches (ventral paravertebral, dorsal paravertebral, and ileal) were evaluated by simulated ultrasonography-guided perineural injection of methylene blue dye in 10 cadavers. Ultrasonographic image quality, number of needle redirections required for correct needle positioning, and injection success as defined through a 3-point grading system were recorded. Results: The dorsal paravertebral approach yielded the best results, compared with the ileal and ventral paravertebral approaches, to properly and adequately stain the targeted nerve. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance: The dorsal paravertebral injection technique appeared to be the best choice for performing a femoral nerve block in calves, although this technique will need to be further evaluated in live calves to determine its effectiveness and clinical usefulness. Diagnostic perineural anesthesia of the femoral nerve in cattle might be helpful in identifying quadriceps muscle involvement in those with complex spastic paresis.

Objective: To compare myocardial cytokine expression in dogs with naturally occurring cardiac or systemic diseases and dogs without cardiac or systemic diseases (control dogs). Sample: Myocardial tissue samples from 7 systemic disease-affected dogs (SDDs), 7 cardiac disease-affected dogs (CDDs), and 8 control dogs. Procedures: mRNA expression of interleukin (IL)-1, IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, interferon (IFN)-γ, transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1, TGF-β2, TGF-β3, and growth differentiation factor-15 in myocardial tissue samples obtained from CDDs, SDDs, and control dogs were analyzed via quantitative PCR assays. Results: In control dogs, only mRNA for TNF-α, TGF-β1, and TGF-β3 was detected; concentrations were significantly higher in male than in female dogs. In SDDs and CDDs, all cytokines, growth factors, and growth differentiation factor-15 were expressed. Compared with findings in SDDs, IL-1, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNF-α, and IFN-γ expression was significantly increased in CDDs; specifically, IL-1, IL-8, TNF-α, TGF-β1, and TGF-β3 expression was increased in the atria and IL-8, IL-10, TNF-α, and IFN-γ expression was increased in the ventricles of CDDs. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance: Data suggested that the alterations in cytokine expression in SDDs and CDDs, compared with control dog findings, were a result of inflammatory system activation. The differences in cytokine expression in atria and ventricles between SDDs and CDDs were suggestive of different remodeling processes. A better knowledge of myocardial involvement in SDDs and of immune regulation in CDDs might beneficially affect morbidity and mortality rates and provide new treatment approaches.

Objective: To determine the prevalence of hypocobalaminemia or methylmalonic acidemia (or both) in dogs with chronic gastrointestinal disease. Sample: Serum samples from 56 dogs with chronic gastrointestinal disease and 43 control dogs. Procedures: Serum cobalamin and methylmalonic acid (MMA) concentrations were measured in all samples and compared between groups. A correlation between serum cobalamin and MMA concentrations and the canine chronic enteropathy clinical activity index was evaluated via the Spearman rank correlation. Results: 20 of 56 (36%) dogs with gastrointestinal disease had hypocobalaminemia. Serum cobalamin concentrations were significantly lower in dogs with gastrointestinal disease than in control dogs. Five of 56 (9%) dogs with chronic gastrointestinal disease and 5 of 20 (25%) hypocobalaminemic dogs had increased MMA concentrations. There was a significant negative correlation (Spearman r = −0.450) between serum cobalamin and MMA concentrations in dogs with gastrointestinal disease. No correlation was found between the canine chronic enteropathy clinical activity index and serum cobalamin or MMA concentrations. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance: These data indicated the prevalence of hypocobalaminemia in dogs with chronic gastrointestinal disease was 20 of 56 (36%). Five of 20 (25%) hypocobalaminemic dogs had increased serum MMA concentrations, which indicated that although hypocobalaminemia was common in these dogs, it did not always appear to be associated with a deficiency of cobalamin on a cellular level. Hypocobalaminemia is a risk factor for negative outcome in dogs with chronic gastrointestinal disease and should be considered in every patient with corresponding clinical signs.

Objective: To compare the feasibility and repeatability of tissue Doppler imaging (TDI) for quantification of radial left ventricular (LV) velocity and deformation from different imaging planes and to correlate cardiac event timing data obtained by TDI to M-mode and pulsed-wave Doppler-derived time intervals in horses. Animals: 10 healthy adult horses. Procedures: Repeated echocardiography was performed by 2 observers from right and left parasternal short-axis views at papillary muscle and chordal levels. The TDI measurements of systolic and diastolic velocity, strain rate, strain peak values, and timing were performed in 8 LV wall segments (LV free wall and interventricular septum from right parasternal views; left and right region of LV wall from left parasternal views). The inter- and intraobserver within- and between-day variability and measurement variability were assessed. The correlation between TDI-based measurements and M-mode and pulsed-wave Doppler-based time measurements was calculated. Results: TDI measurements of velocity, strain rate, and strain were feasible in each horse, although deformation could often not be measured in the LV free wall. Systolic and diastolic time intervals could be determined with low to moderate variability, whereas peak amplitude variability ranged from low to high. The TDI-based time measurements were significantly correlated to M-mode and pulsed-wave Doppler measurements. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance: TDI measurements of radial LV velocity and deformation were feasible with low to moderate variability in 8 LV segments. These measurements can be used for evaluating LV function in further clinical studies.

Objective: To assess inhibitory effects of orally administered anti-inflammatory medications on paracentesis-induced intraocular inflammation in clinically normal cats. Animals: 30 clinically normal domestic shorthair cats. Procedures: Cats were randomly assigned to a control group and 4 treatment groups. Cats in the treatment groups received an anti-inflammatory medication orally once daily at 7 am (acetylsalicylic acid [40.5 mg/cat], meloxicam [0.1 mg/kg], prednisone [5 mg/cat], or prednisolone [5 mg/cat]) for 5 days beginning 2 days before paracentesis-induced breakdown of the blood-aqueous barrier (BAB) and continuing until 2 days after paracentesis. Paracentesis of the anterior chamber was performed in 1 randomly selected eye of each cat. Fluorophotometry was performed in both eyes of each cat immediately before (time 0) and 6, 24, and 48 hours after paracentesis. Results: At 24 and 48 hours after paracentesis, fluorescein concentration in the eye subjected to paracentesis in the cats receiving prednisolone was decreased, compared with that in the control cats. At 48 hours, a decrease in the fluorescein concentration was also apparent in the eye subjected to paracentesis in the cats receiving meloxicam, compared with that in the control cats. There was no evidence of treatment effects for acetylsalicylic acid or prednisone. There was no evidence of treatment effects in eyes not subjected to paracentesis. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance: Orally administered prednisolone and meloxicam significantly decreased intraocular inflammation in clinically normal cats with paracentesis-induced BAB breakdown. Oral administration of prednisolone or meloxicam may be an effective treatment for cats with uveitis.

The objective of this study was to develop prediction models for the serum IgG concentration in critically ill calves based on indirect assays and to assess if the predictive ability of the models could be improved by inclusion of age, clinical covariates, and/or laboratory covariates. Seventy-eight critically ill calves between 1 and 13 days old were selected from 1 farm. Statistical models to predict IgG concentration from the results of the radial immunodiffusion test, the gold standard, were built as a function of indirect assays of serum and plasma protein concentrations, zinc sulfate (ZnSO4) turbidity and transmittance, and serum γ-glutamyl transferase (GGT) activity. For each assay 4 models were built: without covariates, with age, with age and clinical covariates (infection and dehydration status), and with age and laboratory covariates (fibrinogen concentration and packed cell volume). For the protein models, dehydration status (clinical model) and fibrinogen concentration (laboratory model) were selected for inclusion owing to their statistical significance. These variables increased the coefficient of determination (R2) of the models by ≥ 7% but did not significantly improve the sensitivity or specificity of the models to predict passive transfer with a cutoff IgG concentration of 1000 mg/dL. For the GGT assay, including age as a covariate increased the R2 of the model by 3%. For the ZnSO4 turbidity test, none of the covariates were statistically significant. Overall, the R2 of the models ranged from 34% to 62%. This study has provided insight into the importance of adjusting for covariates when using indirect assays to predict IgG concentration in critically ill calves. Results also indicate that ZnSO4 transmittance and turbidity assays could be used advantageously in a field setting.

Differences in the pathogenicity of atypical enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) strains may be due, at least partially, to different expression patterns of some virulence genes. To investigate this hypothesis, the virulence gene expression patterns of 6 atypical EPEC strains isolated from healthy and diarrheic ruminants were compared using quantitative real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction after growing the bacteria in culture medium alone or after binding it to HeLa epithelial cells. Some virulence genes in strains from diarrheic animals were upregulated relative to their expression in strains from healthy animals. When bacteria were cultured in the presence of HeLa cells, the ehxA and efa1/lifA genes, previously associated with the production of diarrhea, were expressed at higher levels in strains from diarrheic animals than in strains from healthy animals. Thus, the expression levels of some virulence genes may help determine which atypical EPEC strains cause diarrhea in ruminants.

Objective—To determine whether inoculation of healthy dogs with a recombinant peptide containing 3 copies of ACTH would result in the production of antibodies against ACTH and whether this would affect pituitary-adrenocortical function. Animals—8 healthy dogs. Procedures—A recombinant peptide consisting of 3 copies of ACTH fused to a T-helper cell epitope was produced in Escherichia coli. The protein was inoculated into 4 dogs at 4-week intervals (total of 3 inoculations/dog). Four control dogs received inoculations of PBS solution mixed with adjuvant. Blood samples were collected for determination of antibody titers against ACTH and for measurement of basal and ACTH-stimulated plasma cortisol concentrations. Results—Inoculation with the ACTH vaccine resulted in production of anti-ACTH antibodies in all 4 dogs. Titers were initially high but declined by 15 weeks after the initial inoculation. Basal cortisol concentrations were unaffected by inoculation with the ACTH vaccine. Plasma cortisol concentrations in response to ACTH stimulation were reduced at 12 weeks, but not at 15 weeks, after the first inoculation. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—Inoculation of dogs with a recombinant ACTH vaccine resulted in the production of antibodies against the hormone. Anti-ACTH titers were initially high but were not sustained. The only detectable endocrine effect in treated dogs was a reduction in cortisol concentration in response to ACTH stimulation in 2 of 4 dogs at 12 weeks after the first inoculation. The effect of vaccine administration on the pituitary-adrenal system was subtle and transient.

Objective-To compare the diagnostic quality of bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid acquired from healthy dogs by manual aspiration via polyethylene tubing (MAPT) and via suction pump aspiration (SPA) with a suction trap connection. Animals-12 healthy adult Beagles. Procedures-BAL was performed with bronchoscopic guidance in anesthetized dogs. The MAPT was performed with a 35-mL syringe attached to polyethylene tubing wedged in a bronchus via the bronchoscope's biopsy channel. The SPA was performed with 5 kPa of negative pressure applied to the bronchoscope's suction valve via a suction trap. The MAPT and SPA techniques were performed in randomized order on opposite caudal lung lobes of each dog. Two 1 mL/kg lavages were performed per site. Samples of BAL fluid were analyzed on the basis of a semiquantitative quality scale, percentage of retrieved fluid, and total nucleated and differential cell counts. Results were compared with Wilcoxon signed rank tests. Results-Percentage of BAL fluid retrieved (median difference, 16.2%), surfactant score (median difference, 1), and neutrophil count (median difference, 74 cells/μL) were significantly higher for SPA than for MAPT. A higher BAL fluid epithelial cell score was obtained via MAPT, compared with that for samples obtained via SPA (median difference, 1). Conclusions and Clinical Relevance-Results indicated that in healthy dogs, SPA provided a higher percentage of BAL fluid retrieval than did MAPT. The SPA technique may improve the rate of diagnostic success for BAL in dogs, compared with that for MAPT. Further evaluation of these aspiration techniques in dogs with respiratory tract disease is required.

Several outbreaks of Rift Valley fever (RVF) have been documented in South Africa since it first occurred in the country in 1950. However, there is no comprehensive account of the timing, location and extent of all known outbreaks. As part of a study investigating the epidemiology of RVF in South Africa, a full history of outbreaks was compiled using references to the disease in South Africa from scientific literature, annual reports, disease reports and animal disease databases. The geographic location and temporal occurrence of each outbreak were recorded as accurately as allowed by the available records. The result was a better and more complete picture than has hitherto been available of the spatial and temporal distribution of RVF in South Africa for the period between 1950 and 2011. Several smaller outbreaks which had not been described previously in literature were documented. Extensive outbreaks occurred in the central interior of the country (Free State, Eastern Cape and Northern Cape provinces), interspersed with smaller outbreaks or long intervening periods of absence, whilst smaller outbreaks occurred in the eastern part of the country (KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga and Gauteng).