Effects of supplemental vitamin D3 on serum 25-hydroxycholecalciferol and growth of preweaning and nursery pigs.

Four experiments were conducted to investigate the effects of varying concentrations of supplemental vitamin D3 on pig growth, feed preference, serum 25-hydroxycholecalciferol [25(OH)D3] , and bone mineralization of nursing and weanling pigs. In Exp. 1, 270 pigs (1.71 ± 0.01 kg BW) were administered 1 of 3 oral vitamin D3 dosages (none, 40,000, or 80,000 IU vitamin D3) on d 1 or 2 of age. Increasing oral vitamin D3 increased serum 25(OH)D3 on d 10 and 20 (quadratic, P < 0.01) and d 30 (linear, P < 0.01). No differences were observed in ADG before weaning or for nursery ADG, ADFI, or G:F. Vitamin D3 concentration had no effect on bone ash concentration or bone histological traits evaluated on d 19 or 35. In Exp. 2, 398 barrows (initially 7 d of age) were used in a 2 × 2 split plot design to determine the influence of vitamin D3 before (none or 40,000 IU vitamin D3 in an oral dose) or after weaning (1,378 or 13,780 IU vitamin D3/kg in nursery diets from d 21 to 31 of age) in a 45-d trial. Before weaning (7 to 21 d of age), oral vitamin D3 dose did not influence growth but increased (P < 0.01) serum 25(OH)D3 at weaning (d 21) and tended (P = 0.08) to increase 25(OH)D3 on d 31. Increasing dietary vitamin D3 concentration from d 21 to 31 increased (P < 0.01) serum 25(OH)D3 on d 31. Neither the oral vitamin D3 dose nor nursery vitamin D3 supplements influenced nursery ADG, ADFI, or G:F. In Exp. 3, 864 pigs (initially 21 d of age) were allotted to 1 of 2 water solubilized vitamin D3 treatments (none or 16,516 IU/L vitamin D3 provided in the drinking water from d 0 to 10) in a 30-d study. Providing vitamin D3 increased serum 25(OH)D3 concentrations on d 10, 20, and 30; however, vitamin D3 supplementation did not affect overall (d 0 to 30) ADG, ADFI, or G:F. In Exp. 4, 72 pigs were used in a feed preference study consisting of 2 feed preference comparisons. Pigs did not differentiate diets containing either 1,378 or 13,780 IU vitamin D3/kg but consumed less (P < 0.01) of a diet containing 44,100 IU vitamin D3/kg compared with the diet containing 1,378 IU vitamin D3/kg. Overall, these studies demonstrate that supplementing vitamin D3 above basal concentrations used in these studies is effective at increasing circulating 25(OH)D3, but the supplement did not influence growth or bone mineralization. Also, concentrations of vitamin D3 of 44,100 IU/kg of the diet may negatively affect feed preference of nursery pigs.

Effects of diet source and vaccination for porcine circovirustype 2 and Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae on nursery pig performance.

Two experiments were conducted to evaluate the effect of nursery diet sources, porcine circovirustype 2 (PCV2) and Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae (M. hyo) vaccines, and vaccination timing on pig (Sus scrofa) performance. In Exp. 1, a total of 400 pigs (5.6 BW, 1.03 kg SD) were used in a 20-d study. Treatments were arranged in a 4 × 2 factorial in a blocked design (5 pigs/pen and10 pens/treatment), with main effects of diet manufacturing source (A, B, C, or D) and vaccination timing (d 0 or 8). On either d 0 (weaning) or 8, pigs received 2 vaccines (Circumvent PCV, Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health, Millsboro, DE; and RespiSure One, Pfizer Animal Health, New York, NY). A pre-determined amount of segregated early weaning (SEW) diet (0.45 kg/pig) was fed followed by a transition diet until d 8, and a common diet from d 8 to 20. Diet source affected (P < 0.001) ADG during the first 4 d and affected (P ≤ 0.02) ADG and ADFI from d 4 to 8. There were no differences (P ≥ 0.18) among diet sources once pigs were fed a common diet (d 8 to 20). Overall, diet source did not affect ADG; but ADFI tended (P = 0.06) to be decreased for pigs fed Diet C compared with those fed Diets A, B, and D. Pigs vaccinated on d 0 had decreased (P ≤ 0.01) ADG and ADFI (d 4 to 8 and d 0 to 8), resulting in lighter (P = 0.003) BW on d 8 than those of pigs not yet vaccinated (d 8). However, overall ADG was not affected by vaccination timing. In Exp. 2, 360 pigs (5.9 SD, 0.91 kg BW) were used in a 35-d trial to evaluate the effects of different vaccines. Treatments were arranged in a 3 by 2 factorial in a blocked design (5 pigs/pen and 12 pens/treatment). Main effects included PCV2 vaccine (none; CircoFLEX, Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica Inc., St. Joseph, MO; or Circumvent PCV); with or without M. hyo vaccine (RespiSure, Pfizer Animal Health, New York, NY). Overall, pigs vaccinated with Circumvent PCV had decreased (P < 0.02) ADG and ADFI compared with CircoFLEX-vaccinated or control pigs. On d 35, pigs vaccinated with Circumvent PCV weighed less (P < 0.01) than CircoFLEX-vaccinated or control pigs. RespiSure-vaccinated pigs had decreased (P ≤ 0.05) ADG compared with control pigs from d 14 to 21 and d 21 to 29. On d 35, RespiSure-vaccinated pigs tended (P = 0.06) to weigh and consume less than control pigs. These data indicate diet source and vaccination timing affects pig performance after weaning. Vaccination for PCV2 and M. hyo independently reduced ADG and ADFI, but the effect was product-dependent.

Implementing Orlando's nursing theory: a pilot study.

1. Implementing Orlando's Nursing Theory results in positive, patient-centered outcomes. 2. Orlando's Nursing Theory provides a "road map" for nursing staff to use when approaching patients. 3. Patients' levels of immediate distress decrease significantly when Orlando's Nursing Theory is used.

Spirituality, resourcefulness, and arthritis impact on health perception of elders with rheumatoid arthritis.

Arthritis is the leading chronic condition for older adults and the leading cause of disability in the United States. Providing holistic care to promote positive health perception and support healthy lifestyle decisions with these individuals is critical in attaining and maintaining quality of life. This study examined variables reflecting reactions to stress, lines of defense and resistance, and the basic core of humans in the context of the Neuman Systems Model in a convenience sample of 47 adults with a mean age of 70.4 years. The combined effects of the social, emotional, and physical impact of arthritis and additive or mediating effects of learned resourcefulness and spirituality on general health perception in older adults were investigated. Social, emotional, and physical impact together predicted health perception. The social impact of arthritis was a significant independent predictor for spirituality. Furthermore, spirituality and health perception were significantly correlated.

Change ... ouch!

Through change workshops, nurses can manage their emotions experienced during restructuring, such as losing familiarity, becoming insecure in their jobs, and grieving the loss of coworkers. The workshops focused on three themes: reminiscence, survival, and celebration.

Evaluation of bovine viral diarrhea virus uptake by preimplantation embryos.

Bovine embryos were exposed to bovine viral diarrhea (BVD) virus in vitro. An uptake of BVD virus by the embryos could not be detected by several assay systems. A significant decrease in the titer of BVD virus was found to occur when the virus was incubated in saline solution + 5% goat serum or minimal essential medium + 5% goat serum for 24 hours at 37 C. Since there was significant inactivation of the BVD virus during the incubation period, lack of viral infectivity of the embryos may have been due to adverse effects of the experimental environmental conditions on the virus or the embryos or upon viral-embryo interaction.