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The objective of this study was to examine the effect of an anaesthesia using 70% carbon dioxide and 30% oxygen on endocrine stress reaction, behaviour and clinical parameters of male suckling piglets during castration. One hundred and seventy one male piglets, three to five days of age, were allocated to two experiments. They were assigned either to the procedures control handling, control castration, handling under anaesthesia or castration under anaesthesia in each experiment. In Experiment 1, adrenaline and noradrenaline plasma concentrations were measured in blood samples taken before (-15 min) and after (immediately, 2 min) handling/castration. In Experiment 2, behavioural observations and clinical parameters such as heart and respiratory rate, oxygen saturation, reflexes and recovery time were assessed at several sampling times. Measurement of adrenaline and noradrenaline concentrations revealed an increase in all groups after handling/castration (p < 0.0167), but higher concentrations were seen in the anaesthetized groups (25 to 93 times) than in control groups (two to four times). The excessive endocrine reaction suggests that carbon dioxide inhalation causes a more stressful situation in piglets compared to castration without anaesthesia. Behavioural abnormalities, significant decreases in the heart rate, the respiratory rate and the oxygen saturation (p < or = 0.001) including a cardiac arrhythmia (extrasystoles) underline the impression that CO2 inhalation anaesthesia negatively affects animal welfare. Based on the results of this study, this anaesthetic method is unsuitable to reduce stress induced by castration. Further research on alternatives is necessary to ensure the well-being of the piglets during castration.

The pre-emptive use of analgesics for the reduction of pain induced by the castration of suckling piglets was investigated by measuring cortisol before as well as 30 min (minutes), 1 h (hour), 4 h and 24 h after castration/handling and by post surgical behaviour (0-60 min and 180-240 min after castration/handling). 245 male, 4 to 6 days old piglets with a good general condition were divided into twelve groups. The drugs meloxicam, flunixin, metamizole or carprofen, respectively, or saline solution in control piglets were administered 15 to 30 min before manipulation. All tested non-opioid analgesics reduced the rise of the cortisol concentration after castration. Piglets receiving meloxicam and flunixin had significantly lower values 30 min, 1 h and 4 h after castration than the control group, and already after 1 h they did not differ significantly from the corresponding handling groups. The frequency of occurrence of tail wagging, drooping the tail and changing the position was explicitly reduced when meloxicam and flunixin were injected before castration. The effect of flunixin was most clear. Results indicate that non-opioid analgesics, especially efficient anti-inflammatory drugs like meloxicam and flunixin, are capable of reducing castration-induced pain in piglets.

The aim of this study was to investigate the incidence and influence of different causative organisms involved in the development of pneumonia and bronchopneumonia in pigs. Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) from 339 pigs was examined molecular-biologically and culturally. The evaluation considered the following pathogens: Mycoplasma (M.) hyopneumoniae, Mycoplasma (M.) hyorhinis, PRRSV (US-Type), PRRSV (EU-Type), PCV-2, Influenzavirus Type A, alpha-haemolytic Streptococci, beta-haemolytic Streptococci, Pasteurella (P.) multocida, Bordetella (B.) bronchiseptica, Haemophilus (H.) parasuis and Actinobacillus (A.) pleuropneumoniae. This was followed by a pathological-anatomical examination in 168 pigs. Pathological-anatomical examination was evaluated for possible interstitial pneumonia, catarrhal-purulent bronchopneumonia and pleuritis. alpha-haemolytic Streptococci, PCV-2, H. parasuis, M. hyorhinis, M. hyopneumoniae, B. bronchiseptica, PRRSV (US-Type), P. multocida, PRRSV (EU-Type) and Influenzavirus Type A were evident in descending incidence in the BALF. A. pleuropneumoniae were only isolated culturally in two cases in the BALF. The frequency and semiquantitative detection rate in the bacteriological culture of alpha-haemolytic Steptococci, M. hyopneumoniae, P. multocida and B. bronchiseptica correlated significantly with the ascertained clinical evaluation score and the pathological-anatomical examination score. M. hyorhinis and Influenzavirus Type A only correlated with the severity degree of clinical appearance, while PCV-2 and PRRSV (US-Type) correlated with the frequency of pathological-anatomical changes. The higher the clinical score, the higher was the number of animals ascertained with five or more different pathogens. The more different causal agents were isolated in the BALF of one animal, the higher was the average pathological-anatomical examination score. For the diagnosis of pneumonia, especially when analysing facultative pathogens or secondary pathogens, a useful interpretation of analysis results is only possible in connection with a clinical and pathological evaluation.

Since April 2006 piglets in Germany can only be castrated without anesthesia in the first 7 days of life. However, a castration is a painful experience even for an animal of this young age. Whether the castration under isoflurane-anesthesia is a reasonable alternative to castration without anesthesia was tested in the following investigation at 206 4 to 6 day old piglets. The serum-cortisol-concentration was chosen as the parameter for the pain caused by castration. A part of the animals was castrated without anesthesia (group II, n = 42) or with anesthesia (group IV, n = 41). Additionally Meloxicam, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, was applicated to piglets castrated with anesthesia (group V, n = 41). For control another part of the animals were only handled without (group I, n = 41) or with anesthesia (group III, n = 41), but they were not castrated. Cortisol-concentration prior to castration was compared to the concentration 0.5, 1,4 and 24 hours after castration. In addition cortisol was compared between groups at all points of time. Cortisol did rise significantly in castrated animals with animals with or without anesthesia than in animals of the non-castrated control groups. Cortisol after castration was significantly lower in piglets with an application of Meloxicam prior to castration. The pain caused by castration is an explanation for the differences in cortisol-concentration between castrated and not-castrated animals. Regarding those results, we assume that castration with isoflurane-anesthesia does not fulfil the demand for reducing pain after castration compared to castrating piglets without anesthesia.

According to the current German animal welfare law, male piglets may be surgical castrated without anaesthesia up to four weeks of life. This surgical procedure is painful during and also after the operation, for newborn animals as well as for adults. This study was aimed to investigate the impact of preoperative application of analgesics (Meloxicam) on the postoperative castration - pain of four to six days old male piglets. In this investigation all animals were randomly distributed in three groups:the first one was only immobilized but had no surgery, the second one was castrated without analgesics, and the third group was castrated after application of Meloxicam. Blood samples were taken immediately before immobilization, castration or application of the analgesic as well as one, four and 28 hours afterwards to determine Cortisol-concentration in the blood serum and, via this stress-marker, to indirectly evaluate the postoperative und possible intraoperative castration-pain. As a result all piglets castrated without preoperative application of Meloxicam showed significantly increased Cortisol-concentration one and four hours after castration. In contrast, piglets castrated with analgesics resulted in no significant increase during the entire experiment.

Acute myeloid leukemia is a rare finding in swine. A case of acute promyelocytic leukemia is described by light microscopy, enzyme- and immunohistochemistry as well as electron microscopy. Tumour cells can be demonstrated in bone marrow, lymph nodes, liver, spleen, kidneys, small intestine and myocardium. The tumorous neutrophil precursor cells are positive for naphthol-AS-D-chloroacetate esterase and lysozyme. They show ultrastructurally numerous granules as typical for promyelocytes. Virus particles of the oncorna-c-type can be demonstrated within the tumour cells.

The efficiency of magnesium-aspartate-hydrochloride (MAH) in prophylaxis of porcine stress-induced myopathy was investigated. For the examination a conveyor belt was used. MAH was administered orally or intramuscularly. Clinical investigations, blood specimen collections and ECG were carried out before and after running. Stress-induced tachypnoea and tachycardia and hyperthermia were reduced after both forms of administration of MAH. The enzyme activity of CK, LDH and alpha-HBDH increased slighter after oral and i. m. application. The increase of serum glucose concentration as well as serum lactate level were reduced after oral and i. m. substitution with MAH. In the ECG apart from the relative diastolic period all time values were significantly prolonged after MAH-substitution. The results indicate that several stress-induced changes of clinical and metabolic parameters can be reduced by administration of MAH.

Osmotic fragility of erythrocytes was tested in weaned pigs experimentally infected with Eperythrozoon (E.) suis. Acute eperythrozoonosis of splenectomized pigs led to an increase of osmotic fragility. It is supposed that E. suis infection causes a structural change in erythrocyte membrane. Possible mechanisms of this cell membrane injury are discussed.

Serological studies by means of a CF-Test and Elisa were undertaken for evaluation of antibody titers against Eperythrozoon suis infection in swine. The animals were partly splenectomized and underwent artificial infection. It could be shown that the splenectomized animals showed higher and longer lasting antibody titers than the non splenectomized swine. It is stated, that the above mentioned tests can be used in diagnosis on a herd basis but not on a single animal basis.

Investigations were carried out on the influence of latent and clinically manifest Eperythrozoon suis infection upon haemostasis in swine. The study was carried out with 14 German Landrace pigs. Latent eperythrozoonosis was induced in 7 animals by experimental infection. Splenectomy of these 7 animals and 2 spontaneously infected pigs led to clinical manifestation of eperythrozoonosis. Five clinically healthy pigs were splenectomized and served as controls. In healthy pigs splenectomy was followed by a transient rise in fibrinogen and platelet count. Latent infection with Eperythrozoon suis did not cause an impairment of haemostasis. Acute eperythrozoonosis was associated with increased haemorrhagic tendency considered to be a consequence of intravascular coagulation and subsequent consumption coagulopathy. There was a prolongation of partial thromboplastin time and prothrombin time (Quick) and a decrease of platelet count. Thrombelastography showed prolongation of reaction and clot building time and a short-term decrease of maximum amplitude. Deviation from normal values was proportional to the number of red blood cells infected with Eperythrozoon suis. Anti-rickettsial therapy led to quick normalization of haemostasis. Various aspects of the cause and the consequences of the haemostatic defect are discussed with special regard to the underlying disease.

Infection with Eperythrozoon suis (E. suis) normally takes a latent course and depends on various factors. Only animals suffering extreme stress show clinically manifest attacks with anemia, fever and occasionally jaundice. Stress in the form of high animal-concentration in the stables, poor climatic conditions, change of stables or food or chronic general diseases predispose the pigs to clinical illness. The diagnosis of E. suis infection is made difficult by the prevalence of general diseases in the stocks. Experimental infections have shown that also latent infections with E. suis cause partly significant deviations in the red and white blood cell count as well as in the glucose and acid-base balance and lead to serologically detectable immune reactions which could be used as a basis for stock-diagnosis. It is still unknown to what extent infection with E. suis represents a factor in the manifestation of other complex diseases. Some observations, however, give reason to believe that Eperythrozoonosis as a basis infection is itself a precursor for the manifestation of widespread infectious diseases.