INTRAUTERINE BACTERIAL FINDINGS IN POSTPARTUM COWS WITH RETAINED FETAL MEMBRANES

Eleven Swedish postpartum cows with retained fetal membranes (RFM) wer e studied to determine the intrauterine bacterial flora. Bacteriologic al examination was performed from twice weekly uterine biopsies. A tot al of 161 biopsies were collected during the first 8 weeks postpartum of which 82 (50.9%) were found with bacterial growth. Seventy-one of t he 82 bacteria-positive biopsies (86.6%) showed mixed infections where as the remaining 11 (13.4%) were pure cultures. Generally, a total of 322 isolates belonging to 12 different genera of bacteria, 6 facultati ve and 6 obligate anaerobic pathogens were identified. Mixed infection s were most frequent for Actinomyces pyogenes together with obligate a naerobic bacteria, especially Bacteroids levii/spp. and Fusobacterium necrophorum. All of the studied cows had an infection that involved th e first two genera of bacteria, whereas F. necrpphorum was found in 8 of the 11 animals. The present work suggests that a possible pathogeni c synergism between A. pyogenes and the two main Gram-negative anaerob es might have caused early endometritis and/or persistent infection.