Effect of farrowing duration, parity number and the type of anti-inflammatory drug on postparturient disorders in sows: a clinical study

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of farrowing duration, parity number, and type of anti-inflammatory drug used postpartum on the incidence of postparturient disorders in sows. The duration of farrowing and postparturient disorders were examined in 64 sows at Days 0, 1, 2, and 3 after farrowing. The sows were classified according to parity number (1, 2-4, and 5-7), duration of farrowing (<2, 2-2.9, 3-3.9, and 4-8 h), and the type of anti-inflammatory drugs (flunixin méglumine and dipyrone). The farrowing duration was 178.0 ± 73.5 min (2.96 h). The percentage of sows with fever increased from 40 to 100 % when the farrowing duration increased from <2 to 4-8 h. On Day 1 of the postpartum, 93.7 % of primiparous sows had fever, while 52.6 and 47.6 % of sows parity 2-4 and 5-7 had a fever (P<0.05). The presence of vaginal discharge on Day 1 of the postpartum was higher in sows of parity 5-7 than sows of parity 2-4 (85.7 and 52.6 %, P=0.029). The use of flunixin méglumine after parturition in sows reduced the percentage of sows with a fever from 61.3 to 22.6 % within 2 days (P=0.002), while, the percentage of sows with a fever was not decreased in sows treated with dipyrone. It can be concluded that the incidence of postparturient disorders in sows was affected by sow parity, farrowing duration and the type of anti-inflammatory drug used. Sows with a farrowing duration of ≥ 4 h were at a high risk of having fever at Day 1 after parturition.