Clinical biochemistry, haematology and body weight in piglets.

Reference ranges for clinical biochemical parameters commonly investigated in pigs were determined in one- (day 1), 21- and 35-day old piglets. The mean and standard deviation were also estimated for body weight, and haematological and clinical biochemical parameters at these ages. The piglets were divided into 2 investigation groups according to whether they had a haemoglobin concentration < or = 80 g/l ("anaemic group") or > 80 g/l ("normal group") on days 14, 21 and 28. The "anaemic group" was compared to the "normal group" on days 21 and 35. Many of the clinical biochemical parameters varied according to age. Some of the enzymes had high average values and wide reference ranges in piglets, especially on day 1, compared to the reference ranges for sows given in the literature. The reference ranges for some of the metabolic parameters were broader on day 1 than later in the preweaning period. The reference ranges for albumin, total iron-binding capacity and serum iron were, however, lower and more narrow on day 1. On days 21 and 35, relatively high values for phosphorus must be considered "normal" compared to the figures given in the literature for adult pigs. The other minerals seemed to be quite unaffected of age, but some were affected by anaemia. The anaemic piglets had lower average serum iron but higher total iron-binding capacity than the "normal" piglets on days 21 and 35. However, variation between piglets gave wide reference ranges, indicating that these parameters will only have limited usefulness in detecting iron deficiency anaemia in piglets. The electrolytes seemed also to be affected by the existence of anaemia. The body weight and leukocyte counts were significantly lower in the "anaemic group" than the "normal group" on day 35, while the greatest differences in clinical biochemical parameters between the groups were found on day 21, when the piglets in the "anaemic group" were most severely anaemic. Although these piglets suffered from severe iron-deficiency anaemia, only a few clinical biochemical parameters were affected, and the differences between groups were mostly small.

Plasma magnesium, calcium and inorganic phosphorus in Norwegian semi-domestic female reindeer (Rangifer tarandus tarandus) on winter pastures.

Altogether 1645 blood plasma samples were collected from 2 reindeer (Rangifer tarandus tarandus L) herds in northern Norway (Magerøy and Sørøy), and from 2 herds in southern Norway (Filefjell and Lom) during the period from 1992 through 1995. Except for 2 subsets of samples from Lom (N = 51 and 56) all samples were collected on winter pasture between January and early March. The herds were of varying nutritional status, the Lom herd being regarded to be among the best in the country in this regard. Plasma levels of magnesium, calcium and inorganic phosphorus were measured. In addition, plasma progesterone was used as a pregnancy test, a discriminatory level of 7 nmol l-1 being chosen as indicating pregnancy. For the investigated minerals, the analysis of variance included effects for year of sampling, herd, pregnancy status, age and mineral status. Average mineral concentrations varied considerably between herds and year of sampling. The overall average (SD; min-max) concentrations of plasma Ca, Mg and P in samples collected on winter pastures were 2.42 (0.25; 0.9-3.6), 0.83 (0.17; 0.16-1.39) and 1.70 (0.47; 0.2-3.4) mmol l-1, respectively. The overall pregnancy rate was 79.8%. The frequency of subnormal plasma values within herds and years for magnesium (< or = 0.7 mmol l-1) and calcium (< or = 2.2 mmol l-1) varied between 0-61.9% and 1.4-44.9% respectively. Significant positive correlations between calcium and magnesium were found in all herds except in the Lom herd where all animals had plasma Mg values above 0.8 mmol l-1. Generally, the highest correlation coefficients were found in subsets of data with a high frequency of subnormal magnesium concentrations. Plasma magnesium showed the greatest contribution to plasma calcium variance when tested together with herd, year of sampling, pregnancy status, age and plasma inorganic phosphorus. A decrease in plasma magnesium from 1 to < 0.5 mmol l-1 was associated with a decrease in plasma calcium of approximately 15%. Mean plasma magnesium and calcium levels were significantly (p < 0.01) higher in pregnant animals than in barren females, a significant positive relationship being found between pregnancy rate and average concentrations of the same minerals when sets of observations from different herds and different years were compared. The positive correlation between plasma calcium and magnesium in herds with subnormal magnesium minima is consistent with evidence from other species reported in the literature of impaired calcium homeostasis in magnesium deficient animals.

Effects of storage time and freezing temperature on clinical chemical parameters from canine serum and heparinized plasma.

To assess changes in 24 blood constituents in frozen serum and heparinized plasma, blood samples were drawn from 10 clinically normal German Shepherd army dogs. The storage characteristics of nine enzymes (ALP, ALT, amylase, AST, CK, GGT, GLDH, LDH, lipase), and 15 metabolites and minerals (albumin, bile acids, bilirubin, calcium, cholesterol, creatinine, fructosamine, glucose, magnesium, phosphate, potassium, protein, sodium, triglycerides, urea) were studied. Parallel samples of serum and heparinized plasma were stored for 90 and 240 days at two different storage temperatures, -200 degrees C and -700 degrees C. Sixteen of the 24 analytes (ALP, ALT, amylase, AST, CK, GGT, GLDH, LDH, bile acids, calcium, cholesterol, creatinine, fructosamine, magnesium, phosphate, urea) showed statistically significant (p < 0.05) changes during the storage period related to storage time, storage temperature, and sample type. Seven of the analytes (amylase, GGT, GLDH, LDH, bile acids, fructosamine, magnesium) showed changes of possible clinical importance with mean differences from baseline larger than 20% for the enzymes and 10% for the metabolites and minerals during the storage periods.