Any peritoneal inflammatory process consequent to infections or surgical injuries may induce abdominal adhesion formation. Peritoneal adhesions are connective laciniae that develop among abdomino-pelvic organs that limit physiologic visceral motion. Consequently, fertility may be impaired, and intestinal obstruction and pelvic pain may develop, mainly in subjects that had undergone gynaecological surgery. This review illustrates the pathogenic steps of adhesiogenesis and the therapeutic scenario that evolved over the years to tackle the threat of peritoneal adhesions, both in domestic animals and in women.

This paper reviews puerperal metritis in the cow, particularly the complex and multi-factorial pathogenesis characterized by an altered cross-talk among infectious agents, endocrine and immune systems. Uterine infections impair fertility and is one of the main causes of economic losses in dairy production. The early postpartum is a period characterized by an increased exposition to infectious agents and the disruption of the metabolic homeostasis, leading to endocrine and immunologic disorders. Dysregulation of uterine defence mechanisms results in the development of metritis. Because there is a complex interaction between infectious, endocrine and immune factors during metritis, there is need to use safer and cheaper drugs which are able to strengthen the anti-infective actions of the routine therapies.

Milk fever is a postpartum syndrome of cows characterized by acute hypocalcemia, which reduces the release of acetylcholine (ACH), inducing flaccid paralysis and recumbency. Our aim was to evaluate the effect of calcium (Ca2+) combined with naloxone (Nx, an opioid antagonist; Ca2+-Nx) on plasma concentrations of ACH, beta-endorphin (betaE), and Ca2+ just before treatment (T0) and at 15, 30, and 90 min after treatment (T15, T30, and T90, respectively). Thirty cows were divided into 3 groups of 10 cows each. In group A1, cows affected by milk fever were treated (i.v.) with a combination of 0.2 mL/kg of body weight (BW) of Ca2+ borogluconate (20%) and 0.01 mg/kg of BW of Nx hydrochloride dihydrate. In group A2, cows affected by milk fever were treated (i.v.) with 2 mL/kg of BW of Ca2+ borogluconate (20%). In group C, healthy cows were treated (i.v.) with a combination of 0.2 mL/kg of BW of Ca2+ borogluconate (20%) and 0.01 mg/kg of BW of Nx hydrochloride dihydrate. Cows underwent treatments within 24 h of calving. Blood samples were collected at T0 and at T15, T30, and T90 for quantitative determination of ACH, betaE, and Ca2+. The cows in groups A1 and A2 recovered within a mean of 20 +/- 10 min, although 4 cows in group A2 underwent a relapse. Blood Ca2+ concentrations in group C increased slightly at T30 and at T90 (T30: 8.8 +/- 0.6 mg/dL; T90: 8.7 +/- 0.6 mg/dL) after treatment, whereas the response in groups affected by milk fever was similar, even though Ca2+ concentrations showed a sharp increase (A1: 8.9 +/- 0.8 mg/dL; A2: 6.0 +/- 0.7 mg/dL), particularly at T15 in group A1. Concentrations of betaE showed a similar pattern in groups A1 and C, with an increase at T15 (A1: 8.2 +/- 1.0 ng/mL; C: 2.7 +/- 0.4 ng/mL) and a subsequent decrease until T90 (A1: 1.4 +/- 0.3 ng/mL; C: 1.4 +/- 0.4 ng/mL), whereas betaE remained constant throughout in group A2. Concentrations of ACH in group A1 decreased significantly between T0 and T15, T30, and T90 (T0: 7.2 +/- 1.1 nmol/L; T15: 4.2 +/- 1.2 nmol/L; T30: 2.9 +/- 0.8 nmol/L; T90: 3.1 +/- 0.3 nmol/L), whereas in group A2, it did not change. In group C, concentrations of ACH decreased at T15 and increased again at T30 (T15: 1.1 +/- 0.3 nmol/L; T30: 3.2 +/- 0.7 nmol/L). Our results suggest that administration of Ca2+-Nx, which restored the physiological Ca2+ concentrations, might have an effect on nicotinic receptors by restoring the normal neuromuscular transmission at the motor endplate.