Evaluation of vaginal discharge with the Metricheck device and the relationship to reproductive performance in postpartum dairy cows

Abstract

Vaginal mucus during estrus was examined with the Metricheck device and the relationship to the reproduction of high-yielding dairy cows was studied. The study was conducted in 99 dairy herds located in Western Germany and 1348 Holstein-Friesian heifers and cows showing spontaneous estrus were examined. Independent of the Metricheck result, the animals were inspected by professional insemination technicians and those suitable for insemination (n = 989) were bred by artificial insemination (AI). Reproductive performance was characterized by non-return rate at 90 days (NRR90). The discharge of the animals predominantly had a clear appearance (70%) and a stringy consistency (80%). Animals with clear vaginal discharge had higher NRR90 (56%; n = 697) than animals with abnormal (turbid, mucopurulent, purulent, sanguineous) vaginal secretion (48%, n = 292; P < 0.05). NRR90 was lower in animals with short calving to AI interval (< 70 days; 39%) than with medium (70-130 days; 54%) or long (> 130 days; 62%) intervals (P < 0.05). NRR90 decreased by 12% from the lowest (< 15 kg) to the highest (> 45 kg) milk yield class. In conclusion, the use of the Metricheck device integrated into the insemination procedure is recommended to identify dairy cows suffering severely from uterine disease.

63 Effect of Endometrial Biopsy on Uterine Health of Tropically Adapted Beef Cattle

“…This scoring system has been correlated with the presence of pathogenic bacteria and the prognostic value for pregnancy success . Postpartum cows with clear discharge (score 0) had higher non-return rate at 90 days (56%) than cows with abnormal vaginal secretion (score >1) (48% P< 0,05) (Lambertz et al, 2014). However, vaginal discharges are not always indicative of uterine infection because many cases of vaginitis or cervicitis can occur in parallel without uterine disorders and vice versa.…”

Effects of a single transdermal administration of flunixin meglumine in early postpartum Holstein Friesian dairy cows: Part 1. Inflammatory and metabolic markers, uterine health, and indicators of pain

“…Additionally, the character of vaginal discharge was assessed using the Metricheck (MC) device (Simcro Tech Ltd.;McDougall et al, 2007) on d 8 and 15 p.p. Vaginal discharge was scored on a 0 to 3 scale (score 0 = clear, mucoid discharge; score 1 = mucopurulent discharge with <50% of pus; score 2 = mucopurulent discharge with >50% of pus; score 3 = brownish-reddish, watery, foul-smelling discharge) as described previously (Sheldon and Dobson, 2004;Sheldon et al, 2006;McDougall et al, 2007;Senosy et al, 2012;Lambertz et al, 2014). Based on MC score and RBT on d 8 and 15 p.p., respectively, 4 uterine health categories (UHC) were defined (score 1 = MC score ≤1 and RBT <39.5°C; score 2 = MC score ≤1 and RBT ≥39.5°C; score 3 = MC score ≥2 and RBT <39.5°C; score 4 = MC score ≥2 and RBT ≥39.5°C).…”

“…Day 2 was included as a covariate.3 In an ordinal regression model with a dichotomous predictor variable (CON vs. FM) and an ordinal dependent variable (e.g., MC score 0-3), the odds ratio describes the risk of finding a higher category of the dependent variable that comes with a one-unit increase in the predictor variable. For example, when FM is defined as reference category within the predictor variable, an odds ratio = 1.5 indicates a 1.5 times increased risk for CON cows to fall into a higher category of the dependent variable compared with FM.4 Metricheck score was assessed on a 0 to 3 scale modified according to previous recommendations(Sheldon and Dobson, 2004;Sheldon et al, 2006;McDougall et al, 2007;Senosy et al, 2012;Lambertz et al, 2014).5 Four different uterine health categories were defined by MC score and rectal body temperature (RBT; category 1 = MC score ≤1 and RBT <39.5°C; category 2 = MC score ≤1 and RBT ≥39.5°C; category 3 = MC score ≥2 and RBT <39.5°C; category 4 = MC score ≥2 and RBT ≥39.5°C).6 Rumen fill was recorded on a 1 to 5 scale according toZaaijer and Noordhuizen (2003).7 Locomotion score was recorded on a 1 to 5 scale according toSprecher et al (1997).…”

Evaluation of clinical and subclinical endometritis impacts on the reproductive performance and milk production of dairy cows in Brazilian herds

“…Previous studies carried out on dairy cattle herds in North America (Bicalho et al, 2016; Ribeiro et al, 2013) and Europe (Canadas et al, 2020; Lambertz et al, 2014) reported reduced reproductive performance of cows affected by endometritis; however, in Brazil, to the best of our knowledge, there are no studies describing reproductive performance and risk factors of cows without uterine disease and cows affected by CE and SE between 28 and 33 days after calving.…”