Practical use of clinical cytology for the diagnosis of hepatic lipidosis in dairy cattle

Veterinaria Mexico OA ISSN: 2448-6760 Cite this as: Rodriguez Fierros FL, Quiroz Rocha G, Nunez Ochoa L, Aparicio Cecilio A, Salgado Hernandez EG. Practical use of clinical cytology for the diagnosis of hepatic lipidosis in dairy cattle. Veterinaria Mexico OA. 2018;5(1). doi: 10.21753/vmoa.5.1.386 . Hepatic lipidosis is a metabolic disorder that occurs frequently in dairy cattle. Its clinical evaluation on dairy farms is complex, as it is based on physi­cal, chemical and biological tests. The present study evaluates the practical use of hepatic cytology in dairy cattle and suggests that overall health and dairy production rates of animals are not compromised with this procedure. Cell and blood samples were obtained from 25 randomly selected multipa­rous Holstein dairy cows at three different times during the transition period (at calving and at 10 and 21 days postpartum). The values of haematocrit, plasma protein, fibrinogen, and total and differential leucocyte counts were determined, together with total protein, albumin, glutamate dehydrogenase, triacylglycerides, cholesterol and s-hydroxybutyrate. Cytological results were classified by the detected degree of fatty infiltration, and haematological and metabolic results were compared between each sampled period. The health status and the daily milk production at each sampling stage were recorded. Obtained results indicated that the animals did not show significant clinical inflammation or a decrease in dairy production, which could be deemed secondary to the cytological sampling. This technique is thus regarded as a feasible alternative for the diagnosis of hepatic lipidosis in dairy cattle. Figure 1. Cell aspiration from cow liver in 11th right intercostal space approximately 15 to 20 cm below the spinous apophysis.