Bovine thoracic ultrasonography

a potential tool for the management of bovine respiratory disease

Abstract

Bovine respiratory disease (BRD) continues to be the major animal health concern facing the North American cattle feeding industry. Despite improvements in technologies and the development of new antimicrobials, morbidity and mortality rates have remained flat or even increased. Thoracic ultrasonography (TUS) is a technology that has shown promise as a chute-side diagnostic tool for BRD. Degree of lung consolidation, as determined by TUS, has been negatively correlated to clinical outcome in cattle pulled for signs attributable to BRD and not treated with antimicrobials (negative controls). Thoracic ultrasonography is relatively simple to perform, and many of the available ultrasound machines and probes used for bovine reproductive ultrasonography can also be used to examine the lungs and pleura. While the procedures and techniques for large-scale use in a production setting remain to be validated, practitioners may currently be able to use the technology to add accuracy and value to their recommendations for case management of individual animals.