Influence of meteorological events on obstetrical data in cattle and swine.

In a interdisciplinary scientific cooperation involving human and veterinarian obstetricians and meteorologists, an attempt was made to correlate the obstetrical data of cows and pigs with meteorologically defined weather events. During the observation period of 10 years the parturitions of cattle (n = 645) showed no significant statistical connection to the weather on day of delivery, the day before parturition or the day after. The only significant result in cattle was a shortening of the gestation period by 4.9 days in a group of cows that went into labour on, or after, the sixth day of a constant weather situation. Significant variations in the duration of gestation in swine (n = 786) were related to the weather on the day of delivery; central high-gradient anticyclonic spring, summer and autumn weather was linked to an extension of the pregnancy by nearly 1 day, while cyclonic central low-gradient weather during autumn was related to a shortening of pregnancy by approximately 1 day. The weather on the day before parturition was also correlated with the duration of gestation in swine. In this respect, low-gradient cyclonic autumn weather coincided with gestation periods that were reduced by 0.95 days, while central anticyclonic winter and spring weather coincided with extensions of gestation of 0.98 and 1.12 days, respectively. Compared with labour during low-gradient anticyclonic weather, the course of labour in pigs was significantly protracted by approximately 1.5 h during low-gradient cyclonic weather. Weather fronts on the day before, the day after or on the day of labour had no influence on the gestation and parturition data collected in either species.

[Is premature labor weather-dependent? Correlation of premature labor with meteorologic data]. / Besteht eine Wetterabhängigkeit der Frühgeburtlichkeit? Korrelation von Frühgeburten mit meteorologischen Ereignissen.

A preselected cluster of births (12351-4719 = 7632 = n) which was divided into 3 groups (delivery between 28-32 gestational weeks, 33-37 gestational weeks and > 37 gestational weeks) has been correlated with six major weather situations of the four meteorologically defined seasons. The correlation was made with the date of birth and with one day as well as two days before. The duration of pregnancy was longer by an average of 0.45 weeks (i.e. 3 days) when the major weather situation did not change for more than 8 days. The group with delivery 28-32 weeks is more sensitive to meteorological influences than the group with delivery 33-37 weeks. During cyclonic as well as during anticyclonic atmospheric drifts the groups 28-33 wks and 33-37 wks have been statistically over-represented. As far as the season is concerned over-representation is found in autumn. We conclude that pregnancies at risk of premature delivery should be followed up in short intervals during cyclonic and anticyclonic atmospheric drifts especially during the autumn season.

Diagnosis and therapy of the subinvolution of placental sites in the bitch.

Within the last 19 years, 20 cases of placentitis post partum have been studied at the clinic. On 14 occasions the condition took the form of excessive uterine bleeding (metrorrhagia) post partum and, on five occasions, of prolonged vaginal discharge lasting 8-13 weeks post partum. One bitch with a clinically undetectable form of this disorder was diagnosed at ovariohysterectomy. The average age of the bitches was 4.5 years (range 2-6 years). Examinations included abdominal palpation, vaginoscopy, vaginal smear examination and, if necessary, radiography and ultrasonography. The presence of decidua-like cells in the smear was confirmed as evidence of abnormal uterine involution. Six dogs were subjected to ovariohysterectomy; histological examination revealed inflamed and degenerated areas of the uterine surface. Decidualike cells were seen for up to 10 weeks post partum. Fourteen bitches were treated successfully with an injection of the progestagen Niagestin (25-50 mg per bitch) and both intrauterine and parenteral antibiotics were administered. The discharge stopped within a few days in all dogs treated. A subsequent normal pregnancy occurred in four cases.

[The use of rapid progesterone tests (Serozyme-Progesterone, Ovucheck) for the diagnosis of pregnancy in Austrian mountain sheep]. / Untersuchungen zum Einsatz von Progesteronschnelltests (Serozyme-Progesteron, Ovucheck) zur Graviditätsdiagnose beim österreichischen Bergschaf.

To determine the oestrous cycle length of mountain sheep 10 ewes were stimulated with intravaginal sponges (Chronogest) and ten with prostaglandins (Iliren) and a PMSG injection (500 IU), respectively. Independent of the synchronisation mode the Serozyme-progesterone levels indicated a cycle length of 17 days. Progesterone was not detectable by the test system during oestrous, it reached its maximum on the 10th day (mean = 3.9/3.7 ng/ml) and decreased to non-detectable levels again on day 17. For early pregnancy diagnosis the Serozyme-progesterone as well as the Ovucheck gave useful results. On day 17 and 19 after mating the progesterone concentration of pregnant ewes remained on the same level as on day 10, whereas barren ewes had non-detectable progesterone levels on day 17 and 19, using the Serozyme-progesterone and below 1 ng/ml on day 19 using the Ovucheck. The accuracy of the Serozyme-progesterone referring to the declaration "non pregnant" was 100%, that of the Ovucheck 37.5% on day 17 and 100% on day 19. The use of both test systems for determining pregnancy of unknown length was examined by collecting blood-samples three times with a five and a seven day interval. Precise results were obtained only with the Serozyme-progesterone test. At least one of three blood samples of all the barren ewes (n = 8) contained amounts of progesterone beneath the sensitivity of this method. The Ovucheck results could not help at all to distinguish barren or pregnant ewes with unknown mating data.