Abstract
Simple SummaryThe endometrium health of feline queens can be difficult to assess due to the reduced size of the uterus, which hinders representative biopsy sampling. This may result in limitations in diagnosing endometritis, and consequently in detecting infertility problems. Although histology is considered the most reliable technique for diagnosing endometritis in many species, cytology is also gaining importance and may be an alternative tool for evaluating the endometrium in small species. Two different common cytological techniques (uterine lavage and uterine swabbing) were compared to determine the reliability of cytology for evaluating the endometrium status in queens. Histopathological and bacteriological information was used for the control methods. Our results demonstrated that cytology may be a useful diagnostic tool for assessing the endometrial status. In addition, when comparing cytological techniques, the uterine lavage method was more representative than uterine swabbing.Endometritis is associated with fertility problems in many species, with endometrial biopsy being the main diagnostic tool. In feline queens, the reduced size of the uterus may make it difficult to obtain representative diagnostic samples. Endometrial cytology may represent a valuable diagnostic tool for evaluating the health status of the endometrium in queens. Fifty domestic shorthair queens were included and divided into two cytological diagnostic technique groups, the uterine lavage (UL; n = 28) and uterine swabbing (US; n = 22) groups. Cytological results were compared with histopathological and bacteriological information. Changes in the histopathological patterns were also evaluated and compared with progesterone levels to confirm previous published data. Furthermore, the results from both cytological sampling methods were compared to evaluate the utility of each method. Endometritis was ruled out in all queens by means of histology and microbiology. Leukocyte counts and red blood cell/endometrial cell ratios were significantly higher in US than UL samples. Additionally, UL sampling is less affected by blood contamination and cells are better preserved. The combination of endometrial cytology and uterine culture might be useful for evaluating the endometrial characteristics in queens. The UL evaluation method is more representative of the actual endometrial status than the US technique.
Highlights
Endometritis is defined as inflammation of the uterine mucosa not extending deeper than the stratum spongiosum [1]
Endometritis diagnosis is performed by combining different diagnostic tools such as biopsy, cytology, and culture, among others, with histology classically being used as a fundamental tool for several mammalian species [18,19,20,21]
Animals with neutrophilic or eosinophilic infiltration are classified as having acute endometritis, those with mixed infiltration are classified as having subacute endometritis, while animals that have lymphocytic or lymphoplasmocytic infiltration are classified as having chronic endometritis
Summary
Endometritis is defined as inflammation of the uterine mucosa not extending deeper than the stratum spongiosum [1] It has been widely associated with infertility, recurrent implantation failure, impaired embryo survival, and pregnancy loss in many species, such as mares [2,3], cows [4,5], bitches [6], and women [7]. Recent publications on bitches support the notion that subclinical endometritis is a frequent finding in clinically healthy animals [6] In cows, this condition is well defined and animals that undergo endometritis without evidence of any other clinical sign are recognized as having subclinical endometritis, named cytological endometritis [5,10]. The exact etiology of subclinical and chronic endometritis in healthy females has not been completely understood and seems to be different depending on the species [6]
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