PERIPARTUM HEART-DISEASE IN COWS

Thirteen Holstein dairy cows aged 5.1-10.6 years died or were killed a s a result of severe illness during the peripartum period, associated with lateral recumbency, moaning, tachycardia and dyspnoea. They were all high milk producers (>9000 kg/year) and had experienced at least t hree pregnancies. The average duration of the clinical course was 2.5/-1.7 days. Electrocardiography revealed marked tachycardia associated with atrial fibrillation or atrioventricular dissociation. Serum clin ical chemistry showed severe hypocalcaemia (3.6+/-1.3 mg/dl) and at ne cropsy multifocal myocardial necrosis was invariably found. Myocardial necrosis was accompanied by neutrophilic and mononuclear cellular inf iltrates with interstitial fibrosis. The cause of this lesion was not established. (C) 1995 Academic Press Limited.