Abstract
Blood samples from 3901 calves, marketed by the intermediary of a local society of the Swedish Farmers Meat-Marketing Association during the course of one year, were examined with respect to gammaglobulin levels. The age of the majority of the calves varied between 10 and 21 days. Information concerning the health of the calves and symptoms of illness within four weeks of the sale were obtained from the purchasers. Calves which died were necropsied and subjected to bacteriological, parasitological and in certain cases to virological examinations.
A description is given of the immunodiffusion technique applied.
Sixteen % of the healthy calves had a- and hypogammaglobulin- aemia. A significantly greater mortality risk could be observed in sick calves with low gammaglobulin levels in their serum. When healthy and necropsied calves were compared, the mortality risk was thrice as great in the two groups which had the lowest gammaglobulin levels compared with the others. No significant correlation was obtained between the gammaglobulin level and morbidity risk. Nor were there any differences with regard to the gammaglobulin level between “sporadic” cases of sickness and “herd disease” cases. The most common symptom of illness in the calves was diarrhoea. No significant correlation between a low gammaglobulin level and diarrhoea could be demonstrated.
The causes of death most common in order of frequency were gastroenteritis, septicaemia and pneumonia. Seventy-five % of the calves which died of septicaemia had hypogammaglobulinaemia.
There was no relationship between the age of the calves and the gammaglobulin level. There was, however, a very strong correlation between low weight of the calves and a high frequency of hypogammaglobulinaemia. There was also a significantly statistical correlation between the season of the year when the calves were born and their serum gammaglobulin level.
Sammanfattning
Blodprov från 3901 kalvar, som under ett år försåldes genom en slakteriförenings förmedling, undersöktes med avseende på gainmaglobulinnivån. Åldern för majoriteten av kalvarna varierade mellan 10 och 21 dagar. Uppgifter om kalvarnas hälsotillstånd och observerade sjukdomssymtom intill fyra veckor efter inköpet erhölls av köparna. Kalvar som dog, obducerades och blev föremål för bakteriologisk, parasitologisk och i vissa fall virologisk undersökning.
Den för undersökningen av blodproven använda immunodiffusionstekniken beskrives.
Sexton procent av de friska kalvarna var att betrakta såsom a- respektive hypogammaglobulinemiska. En signifikant ökad mortalitetsrisk förelåg hos sjuka kalvar med låg gammaglobulinnivå i serum. Vid jämförelsen mellan friska och sjuka obducerade kalvar var mortalitetsrisken tre gånger större i de två grupper, som hade lägst gammaglobulinnivå i jämförelse med de övriga. Något signifikant samband mellan gammaglobulinnivån och morbiditetsrisken fanns inte. Inte heller förelåg någon skillnad mellan sporadiskt sjuka och besättningssjuka kalvar med avseende på gammaglobulinnivån. Diarré var det vanligaste sjukdomssymtomet. Något signifikant samband mellan låg gammaglobulinnivå och diarré kunde inte utläsas av materialet.
De vanligaste dödsorsakerna var i ordning gastroenteritis, septikemi och pneumoni. Av de kalvar, som dog i septikemi, hade 75 % hypogammaglobulinemi vid provtagningstillfället.
Någon relation mellan åldern hos de förmedlade kalvarna och gammaglobulinnivån kunde inte utläsas. Däremot förelåg ett mycket starkt samband mellan låg vikt hos kalvarna och hög frekvens hypogammaglobulinemi. Ett signifikant samband förelåg också mellan den tid på året, när kalvarna var födda och deras serumgammaglobulinnivå.
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Acknowledgment
We gratefully acknowledge the valuable assistance of fil. kand. Jan Grandell at the Institute of Mathematical Statistics, Stockholm University.
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