Veterinary Medicine: Clinical Skills and Terminology

• Welcome to Practical Laboratory CIAN 4036, Section 066 L.
• Classes are held on Mondays from 12:30-3:20 pm, in P119.
• The professor is Tatiana M. Garcia Marrero, M.S., DVM.

First Practical Topics

• Course syllabus
• Students will choose groups of 3 for each report.
• Basic veterinary terminology
• Clinical skills in cows
• Hematological tests and blood smears
• Information on white blood cells
• The discussion of the first clinical case concerns abomasal displacement in cows.
• This type of case becomes more engaging through group interactivity.
• Clinical case is not going to be on exams.

Clinical Vocabulary, Part I: Clinical Signs

• Polydipsia: Increased water intake than is normal.
• Polyuria: More frequent urination.
• Tachycardia: Increased cardiac frequency, which is normally 40-80 bpm.
• Bradycardia: Decreased cardiac frequency.
• Tachypnea: Increased respiratory frequency, with a normal rate being 25-50 bpm.
• Bradypnea: Decreased respiratory frequency.
• Apnea: Suspension of breathing.

Clinical Vocabulary, Part I: Pathologies for History and Physical Exams

• Anuria: No urine output from the body.
• Diuresis: Increased output of urine.
• Anorexia: Loss of appetite or not eating.
• Alopecia: Hair loss in a specific area.
• Atonic: Lack of control of the muscles.
• Atrophy: Tissue wasting/degeneration usually occurring when tissue cells are reabsorbed.
• Bruxism: An animal's tendency to clench its teeth.
• Dysphagia: Difficulty eating or swallowing.
• Edema: Fluid accumulation in tissues.
• Effusion: Leaking of fluid or blood in surrounding tissue.
• Ataxia: Inability to control movement, which can end in collapse or stumbling.
• Acetonemia: High amounts of acetone in the blood, also known as milk fever, acidosis, acetonuria, or pregnancy disease.
• Acidosis: The body's pH levels are very low.
• Anisocoria: Different pupil sizes in each eye.
• Arthritis: Joint inflammation.
• Atelectasis: The complete or partial collapse of the entire lung or area (lobe) of the lung.
• Blepharitis: Inflammation of the eyelids.
• Blepharoespasms: Involuntary eyelid spasms in animals.
• Buphthalmos: Enlarged eye.
• Subclinical: Showing no disease signs.
• Ketone: An animal in negative imbalance (change of the fat).
• Ketosis: Blood and tissue disease with excessive ketone accumulation.
• Dysentery: Diarrhea that contains blood.
• Dystocia: Difficulty during birth.
• Endocarditis: Heart lining inflammation.

Clinical Vocabulary, Part I: Procedures

• Abdominocentesis: Insertion of a needle into an animal's abdomen to extract fluid for diagnostic purposes.
• Thoracocentesis is similar and is used for the thorax.
• Tracheotomy: An opening is created in the trachea to insert a tube, generally for breathing.
• Tarsorrhaphy: The eyelids are sutured together.
• Enucleation: Eye extraction.

Physical Exam in Cattle

• It's best to begin with what causes the animal the least amount of stress.
• Take clinical signs and history into consideration.
• History includes determining whether animal is male or female, as well as breed, purpose, and patient name.

Performing a Physical Exam

• Follow the same sequence each time.
• A head-to-tail approach is recommended.
• Pay attention to the animal before starting examination.
  • Look at the BCS
  • How an animal walks
  • Take respiration
  • What the behavior is like
  • Taking vitals before stressing the animal can prevent changes due to elevation

Animal Vitals

• Check heart rate (HR) by feeling the pulse near the elbow.
  • The pulse should be strong, symmetric and synchronous.
• Check the respiratory rate (RR)
• Check for ruminal contractions for 3 minutes.
  • 2-3 is normal
• Check oral and vaginal mucosa for color and moisture
• Take the temperature, normal being 101.5°F (38.5°C) - 103°F (39.5°C).
• Check thorax, abdomen, rectal palpation, mammary gland, and face.

Body Condition

• Compare individual animal to rest of group.
• Note that age, race, and number of births also affect body condition.
• Monitoring the pregnancy helps ensure a healthy delivery.
• Smaller fat reserve increases the chance of pregnancy toxemia.
• Palpating is crucial for confirming healthy body fat levels.

Toxemia

• It is a negative metabolic imbalance in pregnant cows
• Happens when the cow is not getting enough glucose.
• Treating it with fluids as soon as possible helps prevent death.
• It is important to pay attention to the cow's body condition.

Areas for Auscultation: Thorax and Abdomen

• Diagrams highlight areas for auscultation on the thorax and abdomen of the cow.

Lymph Nodes

• A more noticeable lymph node may indicate inflammation on that side if it is asymmetrical.
• Locations include the parotid, submandibular, retropharyngeal, prescapular, prefemoral, and supramammary nodes.

Bovine Leukosis

• It is caused by a retrovirus.
• Diagnosed via lymph node biopsy.
• Spread horizontally
• Prognosis is poor.
• The carcass is thrown away if it is found in the slaughterhouse.

Fecal Score

• Useful if checking for parasites with rapid excretion is needed.

Cryptosporidium Parvum

• A protozoan parasite that affects the mucosa of the intestines.
• Causes moderate to severe diarrhea.
• Spread via the fecal-oral route.
• Biosecurity is very important.
• It is zoonotic, meaning it can be transmitted to humans.

Mammary Gland

• The mammary gland should be symmetrical.
• Palpate each teat and the tissue, checking temperature and feeling for pain.
• Check for secretions, look for color, consistency and odor.
• There is a mammary vein.
• Samples can be taken and cultured
• Can measure somatic cells.
  • There a gel consistency.

Facial Symmetry

• Can indicate neurological issues.
• Monitor nasal and ocular secretions.
• Check oral mucous secretion.
• Rigidity around the eye may indicate dehydration.
• Check cranial nerves.

Dehydration Levels

• Severity levels vary based on percentages, attitude, skin tension, recession, membranes, and extremities.

Areas for Taking Blood Samples

• Includes livestock such as pigs, cows, sheep, goats, and horses.
• Veins for sampling include the jugular, coccygeal, and aural.
• The aural veins are applicable in pigs.

Hematological Tests

• Blood is collected in areas of livestock.
• The CBC test (complete blood count) test requires a violet tube.
• The chemical general test measures all components.
  • Veterinarian can see this practice when vet goes to vaqueria next week.

Complete Blood Count

• Must be collected first to ensure the blood does not congeal.
• The sample must be placed in a violet tube.
• The sample should be gently shaken.
• This will provide a count of erythrocytes, platelets, and white blood cells.
• A smear can also be done manually on a slide.
• Anemia is a condition where either there is a low red blood count or a low hemoglobin.
• Can be checked through the gums.

Blood Smears

• Blood smears are done so that each type of blood cell can be seen and visualized.
• Smears should contain feathered edges for platelet clump evaluation.
• Monolayers are crucial for cell evalution.
• The slide should contain multiple cells.

General Chemistry

• Requires a green tube containing heparin that prevents coagulation.
• The tubes must be placed in the machine immediately.
• Or, a red tube can be utilized for 10 minutes, and centrifuged to accumulate the liquid.
• General chemistry panels assess kidney/renal, liver/hepatic, and pancreatic functions.
• They also measure electrolytes, glucose, and protein levels.
• Other tubes exist, and each have a unique purpose.

Results Printout

• Renal parameters, proteins, pancreatic enzymes can be measured.
• Can also use to measure energy metabolism, liver parameters and electrolytes.

Clinical Case Study: Abomasal Displacement

• Farmer says one of his cows that is about 30 days postpartum is not eating well.
• She has decreased milk production and been separated from the herd.
• The animal may also have twins and high production.
• Questions to ask the farmer would be her diet.

Treatment for Abomasal Displacement

• Calcium supplementation via IV or orally with fluids.
• Prognosis is more negative with a shift to the right.

The Ping in the Physical Exam

• Helps characterize how severe it is and to use trocar.

Injection Site for Bovine

• Images indicate where medicine should be injected.

Upcoming Week

• There will be a Visit to a farm in Lajas.
• Participants can expect: a physical examination, hone blood collection, learn how to administer IV injections, and how to select a milk sample for Mastitis.