Abortion Handling

14.12.07

 http://www.oie.int/downld/imprimeur/pdfs%20review
24-3/Dhand879-886.pdf
Year; 2005
Out of 18644 animals of 57 villages
973 Buffalo serum tested using ELISA
Overall incidences 12 %
Ranged from 0 to 24%
3 times higher incidences animals having the abortion history

Leptosprosis (zoonotic)
Economic loss
Infertility
Decrease milk
Occasionally death

Cause
Parasitic spirochetes genus Leptospira &
serovars
L. hardjo cattle
L. pomona pig and rodents

Transmission
Via
Infected urine
Post-abortive uterine discharge
Infected placenta
Sexual contact

Outside the host

Favored by warm moist climate at neutral pH
around water ponds

Pathogenesis
Leptsira enters through m.membrane or water
softened skin
Incubation 4-10 days
________________ last for 7 days
Pyrexia
Excretion of lepto in milk

With appearance of circulating A.bodies

Lept. Localized in proximal ______ tubules ?
And genital tract of mature animal
Persist in oviduct for 3 wks

Urinary excretion last for few weeks to 3 months

Its seldom presence in the bull

Clinical signs
Acute
in young
Pyrexia, anorexia, hemolytic anemia and jaundice

Lactating cow
Sever drop in milk production
Pink or red milk ?

Chronic
Fetal infection with 3rd trimester abortion 1-6
wks later or stillbirth

Fetal & Uterine pathology

Autolytic changes in fetus
Jaundice in the s/c tissues of the fetus
Petechial hemorrhages
Thymus, lungs, heart and mesentery
Foci of tubular necrosis in the kidney
Yellow cotyledon

Diagnosis & Control

Isolation of organism from which tissue ?
Serological testing
MAT

Control
Limit the contact of animal with contaminated
areas
Closed vaccination

Other infectious causes

Chlamydial infections
Epizootic bovine abortion
Mycobacterium
Salmonella
Fungal
Unknown bovine abortions

Abortion Diagnosis Checklist

While there is no guarantee that a conclusive diagnosis will be arrived at, collecting the proper
information and samples will increase the likelihood of correctly identifying the cause of
abortions in your herd. The following checklist is intended to help you in this process.
Information:
____ animal identification, age & lact'n:___________________________________________
____ animal source: home-raised [ ] purchased [ ]
____ conception date: ___________________________________________ A.I. [ ] Natural [ ]
____ date of pregnancy diagnosis: ____________________________ previous abortion? Y N
____ date of last vaccination:
________________________________________________________________
____ vaccine(s) given at that time:
____________________________________________________________
____ major diseases since conception:
_________________________________________________________
____ clinical signs observed at time of abortion:
________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
________________
___________________________________________________________________________
________________

Sample collection:
Consult your veterinarian immediately. Collect all samples separately into clean containers
such as unused rectal sleeves, heavy garbage bags or sterile containers. Refrigerate
samples immediately and submit to diagnostic lab as soon as possible. Provide the
laboratory with the relevant history, clinical signs and diseases suspected.
____ aborted fetus
____ placenta &/or amniotic sac
____ amniotic fluids
____ feed samples (if mycotoxicosis is suspected - take a large, representative sample)
Paired blood samples provide the most useful diagnostic information. A (minimum) fourfold rise in the antibody titre to a specific disease agent in the second sample strongly
suggests that the animal was recently infected. Titres are commonly run for BVD / IBR /
Lepto / BRSV... Collect the blood samples in a tube that allows blood to clot (eg. a "red top
Vacutainer") and have your veterinarian freeze the first sample until the second is
collected.
____ acute blood sample - taken as soon as possible after abortion is observed
____ convalescent blood sample - collected 2 - 4 weeks after acute sample

Approximate Age of the aborted cow fetus