Evaluation of a systemic antibiotic treatment of toxic puerperal metritis in dairy cows

The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and economic effic iency of a systemic treatment of toxic puerperal metritis in dairy cows wit h ceftiofur. Cows with abnormal vaginal discharge at a postpartum examinati on (d 4 to 6 after calving) and a rectal temperature greater than or equal to 39.5 degreesC were assigned to three treatment groups. Cows in group 1 ( n = 70) received 600 mg of ceftiofur intramuscularly (i.m.) on 3 consecutiv e days. Cows in group 2 (n = 79) received an intrauterine treatment with an tibiotic pills consisting of 2500 mg of ampicillin and 2500 mg of cloxacill in and an additional 6000 mg (i.m.) of ampicillin. This treatment was perfo rmed on 3 consecutive days. Cows in group 3 (n = 78) received the same intr auterine treatment as in group 2. In addition, 600 mg of ceftiofur was admi nistered i.m. on 3 consecutive days. Body temperature was recorded daily fo r 6 d after first treatment. There were no significant differences among the groups regarding clinical e fficacy at d 6 after first treatment. The cure rates based on rectal temper atures declining to below 39.5 degreesC on d 6 after treatment were 82.9, 8 4.8, and 84.6% for groups 1, 2, and 3, respectively. Reproductive performan ce did not differ significantly between group 1 and groups 2 and 3 for any of the measures tested. A financial analysis with 87 different cost scenari os demonstrated that a systemic treatment of toxic puerperal metritis in ca ttle with ceftiofur is an effective alternative to the combination of local and systemic treatments.