Abstract
Aim:The present study aimed to investigate the effects of different risk factors on stillbirth of piglets born from oxytocin-assisted parturitions.Materials and Methods:Data were collected from a total of 1121 piglets born from 74 Landrace x Yorkshire crossbred sows from a herd. Logistic regression models were used to determine the associations between stillbirth and different risk factors including parity (1, 2, 3-5, and 6-10), gestation length (GL) (112-113, 114-116, and 117-119 days), litter size, birth order (BO), sex, birth interval (BI), cumulative farrowing duration, birth weight (BW), crown rump length, BW deviation, body mass index, ponderal index (PI), and the use of oxytocin during expulsive stage of farrowing.Results:The incidence of stillbirth at litter level and stillbirth rate was 59.5% (44/74) and 8.1% (89/1094), respectively. The final multivariate logistic regression selected BO, BI, PI, GL, and parity as the five most significant risk factors for stillbirth. Increased BO and BI, GL <114 and >116 days, parity 6-10, and low PI increased the stillbirth rate in piglets.Conclusion:Several factors previously determined as risks for stillbirth in exogenous oxytocin-free parturitions also existed in exogenous oxytocin-assisted parturitions. One dose of oxytocin at fairly high BO did not increase stillbirth, whereas two doses of oxytocin were potentially associated with increased values.
Highlights
Oxytocin is commonly used as an obstetric intervention to reduce farrowing duration in sows [1], with controversial effects on stillbirth rates
The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of different factors including parity, gestation length (GL), litter size (LS), piglet gender, birth interval (BI), cumulative farrowing duration (CFD), birth order (BO), crown rump length (CRL), birth weight (BW), birth weight deviation (BWD), body mass index (BMI), and ponderal index (PI) on the stillbirth of piglets born from exogenous oxytocin-assisted parturitions
Among the 1121 piglets born to 74 litters, 27 piglets were mummified (2.4%) and 89 piglets were stillborn (8.1%, 89/1094)
Summary
Oxytocin is commonly used as an obstetric intervention to reduce farrowing duration in sows [1], with controversial effects on stillbirth rates. Studies that evaluated the effect of oxytocin on stillbirth at litter level [4,5,12] might include some degree of bias since stillborn piglet(s) might be born before the use of oxytocin. Administration of oxytocin after the birth of the first piglet resulted in either increased hypoxia and stillbirth [7,8,9,10,11] or non-significant effect [14]. Those studies significantly contributed in the understanding of oxytocin action in uterus and of its effect
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