Clinical course and symptoms in calves with a perforating abomasal ulcer

Clinical course and symptoms in calves with a perforating abomasal ulcer Th is study was designed to provide a detailed description of the clinical cou rse and signs of calves with a perforating abomasal ulcer. Calves up to 6 m onths of age that were admitted to the clinic between May 1997 and June 199 8 were included in the study if they met at least four out of five of the f ollowing criteria: no peracute course of illness, no or only mild signs of colic, abnormal posture, abdominal distension, and increased tension of the abdominal wall. These criteria had been determined in a previous retrospec tive study of the records of 50 calves with perforating ulcers. All thirty calves with a perforating abomasal ulcer were diagnosed correctly. The majo rity (67%) was between six and twelve weeks old. Most of the calves had bee n ill for several days before being admitted. A pet-acute course was not ob served in any of the cases. The clinical picture in all calves was comparat ively uniform despite the different pathways of perforation of the abomasal ulcers. All calves exhibited an abnormal posture and their general conditi on was poor. When offered, 78% of calves put their mouths into water, mostl y without drinking. Only few calves showed mild clinical signs of colic, wh ich was associated with the act of perforation of the ulcer. Abdominal dist ension was a frequent sign and all calves had increased abdominal tension. Ballottement and percussion of the abdominal wall proved valuable in identi fying the direction of the perforation and abomasal displacement. Peristals is of the intestines and rumen was usually absent or greatly diminished. Pa in was elicited over the entire abdomen on palpation. Only traces of feces or scant feces of varying consistency were present in the rectum in most an imals. Melaena or occult blood in the feces had no diagnostic value with re gard to occurrence of perforation. Left-sided displacement of the abomasum occurred in 70% of cases. Repositioning the abomasum by rolling the animal aided the diagnosis. Where displacement and perforation co-existed, the dis placement was considered to have preceded the perforation.