Degenerative joint disease in cattle and buffaloes in the Amazon region: a retrospective study

Abstract

Pesq. Vet. Bras. 34(9):845-850, setembro 2014 845 RESUMO.-[Doença articular degenerativa em bovinos e búfalos na Amazônia: estudo retrospectivo.] Foi realizado um estudo retrospectivo sobre os aspectos epidemiológicos e clínico-patológicos em bovinos e búfalos com doença articular degenerativa (DAD) no estado do Pará, Brasil. Durante os anos de 1999 a 2014 foram avaliados 11 bovinos e 24 bubalinos. Todos os animais atendidos com suspeita clínica de DAD foram submetidos a exame clínico do sistema locomotor. Foram necropsiados sete bovinos e oito bubalinos com sinais clínicos da enfermidade. Os sinais clínicos comuns observados em ambas as espécies foram claudicação crônica, andar rígido, alterações posturais, crepitações audíveis no membro acometido, decúbito prolongado, dificuldade para levantar, e emagrecimento progressivo. As lesões articulares evidenciadas na necropsia consistiram em irregularidade da superfície articular, presença de erosão na cartilagem articular e no tecido ósseo subjacente, proliferação de tecido ósseo periarticular com formação de osteófitos. Tanto nos bovinos como nos bubalinos as articulações mais acometidas foram as dos membros posteriores. Nos bubalinos, possivelmente o principal fator predisponente ao surgimento de DAD foi à deficiência de fósforo, ao contrário dos bovinos, nos quais os defeitos de conformação anatômica dos membros posteriores, traumas crônicos em virtude da atividade exercida, como a coleta de sêmen e a idade avançada, foram o que, possivelmente, contribuíram para surgimento da enfermidade. A retrospective study of the epidemiological and clinic-pathological aspects of cattle and buffaloes with degenerative joint disease (DJD) was conducted in the state of Pará, Brazil. From 1999 to 2014, eleven cattle and 24 buffaloes were evaluated. All the treated animals with suspected DJD underwent a clinical examination of the musculoskeletal system. In seven cattle and eight buffaloes with clinical signs of the disease postmortem examination was performed. The common clinical signs observed in both species were chronic lameness, stiff gait, postural changes, audible crackles in the affected limb, prolonged recumbency, difficulty in getting up and progressive weight loss. The lesions observed at necropsy were: irregular articular surfaces, erosion of the articular cartilage and the underlying bone tissue, and proliferation of the periarticular bone tissue with formation of osteophytes. The most affected joints in cattle and buffaloes wereof the hind limb. In buffaloes, the main predisposing factor to the onset of DJD was phosphorus deficiency. In cattle, defects of the anatomical conformation of the hind limbs, chronic trauma due to the activities performed, such as semen collection, and advanced age possibly contributed to the emergence of the disease.

Clinical and radiographic changes of carpi, tarsi and interphalangeal joints of beef zebu bulls on semen collection regimen

“…Thickened or sclerotic subchondral bone regions, suggestive of joint stress and cartilage degeneration, indicate OC (Kofler et al, 2014). The DJD findings were similar to those of Lima (2009) and Barbosa et al (2014) in cattle.…”

“…Therefore, the nutritional parameters adopted for these animals, which induce weight gain beyond the physiological margins in the sedentary conditions in which they are kept, should be reviewed. Some researchers confirm the influence of aging at the onset of DJD, but also described findings suggestive of the disease in young cattle (Marques et al, 1998;Persson et al, 2007;Barbosa et al, 2014;Nichols and Lardé, 2014). The presence of more severe radiographic changes in older cattle is understandable because OA is a pathological process characteristic of senile animals (Thompson, 2007), which also exhibit heavier body weights.…”

“…Bulls with DJD in a breeding center produced low-quality semen and lost the jump ability for semen collection (Barbosa et al, 2014). Occasionally, bulls in artificial insemination centers, when there is high demand for their products, have their productive lifes impaired by diffuse involvement of the joints, damage that would be ameliorated if breeding program data are more valuable to the bull evaluation than the commercial aesthetic pattern of obesity.…”

Length of condyles and phalanges of Brazilian bovines (Nellore, Pantaneira, Curraleira) and water buffaloes (Murrah Jafarabadi) measured by radiographic images: post-mortem study

“…Moreover, few studies have been done to describe the normal aspects of digits in Nellore (Gonçalves et al, 2014) or to report diseases that affect the limbs in cattle and buffaloes (Barbosa et al, 2014).…”

Livestock Handling Conditions at the Bronze Age Settlements in the Southern Trans-Urals (According to the Analysis of Pathological Changes of the Bone System)

“…. На втором этапе выявленные изменения были определены и описаны по методикам, принятым в ветеринарии и зарубежных археозоологических работах [Климов, 1937;Лукьяновский, 1984;Bartosiewicz, 2008;O'Connor, 2008;Barbosa et al, 2014;Markovic et al, 2014;Stevanovic et al, 2015].…”