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Examination of the lungs of adult sheep with chronic respiratory diseases was readily achieved using both 5MHz linear and sector scanners. Superficial lung abscesses in eight sheep appeared as anechoic areas containing multiple hyperechoic dots bordered distally by a broad hyperechoic capsule. Unilateral fibrinous pleurisy (2 sheep) appeared as an anechoic area containing a hyperechoic latticework. Ovine pulmonary adenocarcinoma (OPA) lesions appeared as sharply demarcated hypoechoic areas in the lung parenchyma initially in the cranioventral lung lobes (21 sheep) with lesions also present in the caudodorsal diaphragmatic lobe (11 sheep); abscesses and areas of calcification within the OPA tumour mass were also identified. Daily treatment with procaine penicillin for 30 consecutive days was successful in both sheep with unilateral fibrinous pleurisy and six sheep identified with superficial lung abscesses measuring 2-8 cmin diameter; only one of two sheep with more extensive lesions recovered. Auscultation of the chest failed to detect adventitious sounds in any of the ten sheep with lung abscesses; normal breath sounds were reduced over the area of fibrinous pleurisy; no pleuritic rubs were heard. Wheezes and crackles auscultated in some OPA cases and did not correlate well with lesions detected ultrasonographically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chronic suppurative pneumonia is a common condition affecting cattle. Accurate diagnosis and delineation of pathology prove difficult when based on lung auscultation. Ultrasonography has been used in bovine fertility management for over 25 years, but it is less commonly used to examine the lungs and pleurae of cattle with suspected respiratory disease. This article presents a series of sonograms obtained from the same animals using both 5MHz linear and 5MHz sector scanners, and correlates the findings with postmortem examination material wherever possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ovine pulmonary adenocarcinoma (OPA) is a contagious tumour of the lungs of sheep. It is also commonly known as Jaagsiekte, ovine pulmonary carcinoma or sheep pulmonary adenomatosis. OPA is generally considered a chronic wasting disease with progressive respiratory distress leading to emaciation, but it may be that early lung lesions predispose to secondary bacterial pneumonia causing sudden death despite antibiotic treatment. OPA is common in the UK and most other countries where sheep are farmed, but the disease may be grossly under-reported because few deaths are investigated on sheep farms. Disease transmission is facilitated by close confinement such as indoor housing. Effective control, and possible disease eradication, has been hampered by the lack of a suitable diagnostic test or vaccine. This article describes the clinical features of OPA and outlines current methods of diagnosis. Issues surrounding the development of improved diagnostic tests are discussed. INSET: Clinical signs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article, the second of two discussing the use of abdominal ultrasonography as an adjunct to a thorough clinical examination in farm animal practice, describes ultrasonographic findings that might be visualised in the abdomen of cattle, with particular focus on the common problems encountered in the species. Part 1, published in the January issue of In Practice (volume 34, pages 12-21), considered ultrasonography of the abdomen in small ruminants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abdominal ultrasonography is a diagnostic technique that can be used in farm animal practice as a complementary adjunct to a thorough clinical examination. This article describes the ultrasonographic findings that can be visualised in the abdomen of small ruminants and outlines some of the common indications for ultrasonography. It illustrates how this modality can be readily incorporated into a clinical examination on farm to provide an accurate demonstration of underlying pathology. A second article, to be published in the February issue of In Practice, will discuss the use of abdominal ultrasonography in cattle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The literature suggests that understandings of teaching and learning can be classified around two metaphors: acquisition and participation. It is further argued that neither metaphor is sufficient and that both are necessary. Drawing on material from a larger study related to the professional development of Special Educational Needs Coordinators, the paper uses concept maps and the associated interviews to explore the understandings of the course participants and changes in their conceptualisation over time. The data reveal that individuals do draw on both metaphors and that their progress can be viewed in terms of both acquiring knowledge and also progress from 'novice to expert.' If teaching and learning, and participants' progress are viewed in this way, there are implications for course development and evaluation. Some of these are considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses research on the significance of classroom interactions to science teaching. It references a study by Orlando G. Aguiar and colleagues, published in the 2010 issue of the "Journal of Research and Science Teaching." It analyzes the impact of student questions on the teaching explanatory structure used by science educators in Brazil. The authors also assess the effects of classroom discourse on students.

PORTABLE ultrasound machines provide an inexpensive, non-invasive tool with which to examine the pleural surfaces and superficial lung parenchyma of ruminants on farm. Ultrasonographic examination of the chest need take no more than five minutes, including preparation time, and is therefore much cheaper than many clinical biochemical tests/profiles and more disease/organ specific, generating immediate results. This article describes the practicalities of a thoracic ultrasound examination and how it might be used to diagnose the most commonly encountered conditions in first-opinion farm animal practice. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The difficulty of using insights from educational research and scholarship to inform the design of subject teaching is widely acknowledged. In this article, we present an example of the design of a short science teaching intervention to illustrate one approach to using insights from research to inform the design of teaching. After outlining the general difficulty in question, the article begins by justifying two design tools in terms of perspectives on science learning (learning demand and communicative approach). We show how these design tools were used to generate a design brief for the teaching, and how the design brief was addressed through one worked example. We consider the role of factors other than educational research and scholarship in the design process. The article concludes with a discussion of this approach to designing teaching as compared to approaches used in the North American design literature, and the (non-Anglophone) European didactics literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

WITH the exception of trace element analyses, routine haematology and clinical biochemistry are less frequently performed in farm animal practice than small animal practice. Although this is mainly due to financial constraints, there is also a relative lack of information on interpretation of results and appropriate reference intervals under differing management systems. Thus, biochemical and haematological investigations tend to be limited to selected tests for flock problems and specific disease presentations in more valuable individuals. This article discusses the use and limitations of laboratory testing as a diagnostic aid in sheep practice, excluding trace element analysis, which is the subject of a previous article (Suttle 2005). Throughout, the focus is on careful and cost‐effective test selection, and appropriate interpretation of results. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

PARTIAL or complete urethral obstruction is a common condition of intensively reared male lambs (entire and castrated) and mature rams. Early recognition of clinical signs by the farmer and prompt veterinary treatment are essential to ensure a satisfactory outcome because irreversible hydronephrosis quickly ensues from urinary back pressure. Early diagnosis is also important to allow rapid implementation of control measures to reduce the occurrence of future cases. As discussed in this article, ultrasonographic examination of the urinary tract can provide much useful information during the initial on-farm examination. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

PREPARTUM vaginal prolapse raises major animal welfare and economic concerns, affecting up to 15 per cent of ewes in modern intensively managed lowland sheep flocks in the UK. While some control can be effected by culling ewes which have previously prolapsed, this policy does not address the immediate treatment and management needs of vaginal prolapse cases presented to the veterinary practitioner or (of much greater concern) those cases which receive no veterinary care. This article outlines an approach to the treatment and management of ewes with vaginal prolapse based upon the authors' practical experience, and reasons that the treatment of vaginal prolapse must be considered an act of veterinary surgery, not least for animal welfare reasons. Furthermore, complications associated with vaginal prolapse cannot be dealt with by the shepherd. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

THE common metabolic disorders of sheep include pregnancy toxaemia and hypocalcaemia. Hypomagnesaemia occurs much less often. As the morbidity rate of these disorders can be high, it is important to establish an early accurate diagnosis to implement therapy and, more importantly, institute preventive measures for the remainder of the flock at risk. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Recumbency, commonly seen in calves less than one week old, poses a diagnostic challenge to the cattle practitioner. This article describes some of the reasons why a calf may be recumbent from birth (often related to trauma during second stage labour) or may subsequently become recumbent at some point following delivery. As with all clinical investigations, it is essential first to obtain an accurate history of the animal and to establish if it was ever able to raise itself and stand unaided. If so, when did the calf become recumbent? Other factors to be considered include the use of traction during parturition and whether the calf became hip-locked during delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

THE main indication for digit amputation in the sheep is septic pedal arthritis which occurs not uncommonly, affecting individual animals on intensively managed sheep units. It results in chronic severe lameness, reduced production and rapid loss of body condition. As such, it represents a serious welfare concern. Deep penetrating wounds of the sole or deep infections secondary to solar ulceration, meanwhile, are very uncommon in sheep, although infection may result from traumatic injury - particularly if an object penetrates at the coronary band and is directed distally. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article focuses on the reminders to veterinarians and advisers concerning the establishment of a farm health and worm control plans with their clients.

A letter to the editor is presented regarding issues on effective and sustainable control of sheep nematode parasites.

The article examines the inefficacy of pour-on macrocyclic lactone anthelmintic treatments against Cooperia species in Highland calves in Great Britain. It cites the potential of macrocyclic lactone resistance in cattle nematode parasites for a lesser health threat. Meanwhile, it suggests the need to select anthelmintic resistance that can emerge rapidly in cattle and to adopt strategies for the preservation of anthelmintic efficacy.

OBSTETRICAL problems occur all too commonly in sheep and pose serious welfare concerns. This article describes an analgesic regimen based on sacrococcygeal epidural xyalzine injection which has produced encouraging results in the field in the treatment of these cases. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

ENDOTOXAEMIA in adult cattle commonly results from peracute Gram-negative bacterial infections including [i]Escherichia coli[/i] mastitis, severe endometritis, septic peritonitis and acute abdominal catastrophes where disruption of the intestinal mucosal barrier may allow absorption of endotoxin. This practice tip describes the technique of hypertonic saline infusion, which has proved to be a useful adjunct in the treatment of generalised endotoxaemia. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]