Relationship between Incidence of Endometritis and Metabolic Status during Peri- and Postpartum Periods in Dairy Cows

Abstract

This study compared blood metabolites during peri- and postpartum periods among cows with clinical or subclinical endometritis and cows without endometritis. Blood samples from 207 Holstein dairy cows were collected at 4 weeks prepartum, just after calving, and at 1, 2, 4, and 6 weeks postpartum to measure serum concentrations of calcium, magnesium, non-esterified fatty acids (NEFAs), total cholesterol, albumin, urea nitrogen, β-hydroxybutyrate (BHBA), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), γ-glutamyltransferase, glucose, and phosphorus. Clinical endometritis was diagnosed by the observation of vaginal discharge (> 50% pus) and subclinical endometritis was diagnosed by the evaluation of uterine cytology (> 18% neutrophils) at 4 weeks postpartum. Cows were divided into three groups based on the presence or absence of clinical or subclinical endometritis: the control group (n = 104), the clinical endometritis group (n = 66), and the subclinical endometritis group (n = 37). Calcium and magnesium concentrations were lower in the clinical endometritis group than in the control and subclinical endometritis groups throughout the study period (p < 0.05 to 0.0001), whereas the NEFAs concentration was higher in the clinical endometritis group than in the control group throughout the study period (p < 0.01). The total cholesterol concentration was lower in the clinical endometritis group than in the control and subclinical endometritis groups throughout the pre- and postpartum periods (p < 0.05 to 0.001). The albumin concentration was lower in the clinical endometritis group than in the control and subclinical endometritis groups during the postpartum period (p < 0.05 to 0.001). The urea nitrogen concentration was lower in the clinical endometritis group than in the control and subclinical endometritis groups at 4 and 6 weeks postpartum (p < 0.01). At 1 week postpartum, the BHBA concentration was higher in the clinical endometritis group than in the control group (p < 0.05), whereas the AST concentration was higher in the clinical endometritis and subclinical endometritis groups than in the control group (p < 0.05). In conclusion, lower serum concentrations of calcium, magnesium, total cholesterol, albumin, and urea nitrogen, but higher concentrations of NEFAs, BHBA, and AST during the postpartum period were associated with the incidence of clinical endometritis, indicating the importance of balanced nutrition during the transition period.