Non-invasive Diagnosis of Fatty Liver and Degree of Fatty Liver in Dairy Cows by Digital Analyses of Hepatic Ultrasonograms

Abstract

The data demonstrate that digital analyses of liver ultrasonograms could diagnose fatty liver and degree of fatty liver (healthy liver, moderate fatty liver, and severe fatty liver with their ranges of 0–8, 8–12, >12% lipids of liver wet weight) with an accuracy of over 90%. Total lipid concentrations could be predicted for liver samples <8% of liver wet weight within 2% of wet weight. Therefore, ultrasound imaging is a reliable, non-invasive technique for determining liver lipid content and for diagnosing fatty liver in early lactation dairy cows to prevent loss of income for dairy farmers.