4 Ruminal Tympany

Transcript

Dear vets,

Greetings!

In lesson three, we have discussed Subacute Ruminal Acidosis, Ruminal drinkers, Ruminal alkalosis. In this lesson four, we are going to discuss the Ruminal tympany.

Ruminal tympany: it is nothing but an accumulation of air in the rumen, it is either in the form of a persistent foam or a free gas in the rumen. So, the persistent foam is because of either leguminous fodder administration, or it may be because of feedlot bloat. The gas bubbles in the persistent foam, it does not coalesce together to form a bigger gas bubble to eruct it. Once the cardia is touched by the bigger gas cap, then only they will have eructation. Small gas bubbles are trapped, it is not going to eructate, it is making the bulk in the rumen fluid, is leading to Frothy bloat.

The types of bloat, as we already discussed: it is primary ruminal tympany or secondary ruminal tympany. Secondary ruminal tympany is mainly because by some other conditions like infectious conditions, choking, or any other disease conditions affecting the esophageal lumen and it is leading to eructation failure. Primary ruminal tympany mainly occurs in two ways one is by the ruminant’s ingestion of leguminous fodder, it is more gas-producing nature, it is leading to pasture bloat and another one more thing is the carbohydrate source to the rumens is finely ground and given that will lead to feedlot bloat, so the primary ruminal tympany is the dietary origin, we need to treat accordingly.

What are the other conditions responsible for the ruminal tympany in cattle? one is Vagal indigestion: in vagal indigestion initially, there will be a hypermotility of the rumen. So here the eructation failure is there, the frothiness of the rumen liquor is there, so there won’t be any proper eructation, and bulkiness of the rumen is going to occur. so Vagal indigestion is going to happen in two ways that are; Anterior functional stenosis and Posterior functional stenosis. Both will lead to the accumulation of content in the room, and it is leading to bloat.

In the case of Diaphragmatic hernia DH: the diaphragm is having some wind the reticulum is herniated into the thoracic cavity, which is trapped, so normal motility of the reticulum is needed for the eructation mechanism, so the primary or secondary ruminal cycles will be eructed. so, the eructation mechanisms won’t be proper, and another thing is during the diaphragmatic hernia, hypermotility of the rumen is there, again it will lead to free gas bloat is turned into frothy bloat. Then Unusual posture: when the animal is in recumbency, either the Lateral recumbency or Sternal recumbency, the content in the ventral abdomen is just compressed up, so that is the fluid medium is touching the cardia, the cardia is not opening when the fluid is touched. so the fermentation is keep on going, it is leading to again bloat. so, the Sternal recumbent animal Lateral recumbent animal, bloat is because of this condition. Then in the case of calves, as we already discussed in ruminant drinkers the abomasal bloat, maybe having distension abdomen, that is having a tympanic resonance.

Another one more condition is an enlargement of the thymus in animals.

Pathogenesis of the Frothy bloat: it is occurring in two ways.

one is pasture- so the animal taking leguminous fodder, it is having chlorophyll, the chloroplast, that is negatively charged, it is going to be combined with the sodium, potassium, and calcium in the rumen, so any cat-ions are there, that ionic substance of chloroplast will be combined, it is favoring some of the micro-organisms, colonize together to form an entrapped gas bubbles. These gas bubbles have more surface tension, it is not collaged together to form a small gas cap, so all small gas bubbles are persistent as such that is making the bulk, that is leading to frothy bloat.

The next one is Feedlot: when the concentrate is highly powdered like a less than 388 nano micrometer in diameter that is favoring some bacteria like Streptococcus Bovis, it is coming to act on that particular area that is producing slime, some thick foamy like thing is there that will coat over the gas bubbles, it is not making the gas bubbles to collage together to form a bigger gas bubble. So what will happen this will lead to the bulkiness of the rumen liquor it is called feedlot bloat.

What are the causes associated with the Secondary Ruminal tympany – physical obstruction of the oesophagus and some infectious like Tetanus, Listeriosis, Botulism, and Granulomatous lesions in the either intraluminally or extra luminally in the obstructing the oesophagus or Amphistomiasis which is clogging the cardia and some of the other conditions like Anaphylaxis Hypercalcemia and Atony of rumen due to acidosis ruminitis, whether the primary or secondary ultimately there will be a persistent distention of the abdomen it is leading to Hypoxia that is decreasing the lung capacity by compressing the diaphragm and leading to hypoxia and death.

Clinical findings are:

• in case of bloat, sudden death will be there, the animal is grazing in a land which is having leguminous fodder, coming to the shed, night hours it is going to develop bloat and unnoticed it is going to develop a sudden death. Sudden death is another one more clinical entity of the frothy bloat.
• Then the animal will have a distended abdomen,
• projectile vomiting, regurgitation may be there, the animal will be restless, and soft frequent dung elimination,
• Hypermotility of the rumen in the initial stage will also lead to hypermotility in another stage,
• then Systolic murmur, in some cases may be absorbed.

In the picture you can able to observe the full distension, the left paralumbar fossa is fully distended, how to confirm the frothy bloat or free gas load, you can percuss the left paralumbar fossa, if it is tympanic resonance it is free gas bloat, it is frothy bloat there will be a dull sound. Another one more way you can pass this stomach tube is if free gas bloat is there it will be relieved as such quickly and in frothy bloat you will get, you can see the picture there is a frothiness, this is making the bulk so when compared to the free gas bloat, frothy bloat is to be addressed first.

Differential diagnosis; what are all the conditions associated with this boat, already we have discussed :

• Vagal indigestion,
• Infectious causes,
• Diaphragmatic hernia,
• The sudden death of any bloating cases may be different diagnosis black Hodder, lightening stroke, Anthrax, snake bites these are the causes we can very well attribute for sudden death, but bloat is also having sudden death. and
• Postmodern findings of any Actinobacillosis or pillometa and Carcinomas are there in the rumen or reticulomasal orifice
• another more important condition is Swellers, it’s a moderately bloating animal when it is making when you are allowing the animal to walk after giving some surface tension reducing agent, it will resolve its bloat automatically, that is called as Swellers.

Treatment: treatment in emergency cases,

• you have to go for Rumenotomy or
• else you can pass the stomach tube to relieve the gas,
• in the emergency situation, you can also go for Trocharization but Trocharization is also having some disadvantage of developing peritonitis,
• we can tie a Bit like structure over the mouth and you can make the animal just have more salivation to be secreted by just licking the Bit and that will be a buffering agent for the foams to collage together.
• then you have to drench the sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3) with 150 to 200 grams of sodium bicarbonate mixed in the water you can give and mineral oils or vegetable oils you can give for cattle and sheep and
• emulsified detergents like dioctyl sodium sulfosuccinate
• synthetic surfactants
• another more important point that the material that is available in the market is Silicone dimethicone as a trading name of Bloatosil or Bloatonil and so many other trade names are there that is reducing the surface tension, by the way, the small gas bubbles collage together to form this bigger gas bubbles that will touch the cardia, the eructation will be started, the animal will be recovering and
• in case of any choke, you have to remove if the cervical oesophagus is having any material, in this picture you are seeing the coconut kernel, which is to be taken through the oral cavity by applying the mouth gag manually. one person to push the content towards the fairings and another one for the person to enter through the oral cavity to get it out so by the way you can reduce the chance of a free gas blow choke can be relieved, and
• you can also diagnose based on the Endoscopy, the endoscopy will identify and another thing is the choke where it is before retrieving you just pass the stomach tube and just locate the area if it is in the cervical oesophagus, you can take it by oral. if it is entered into the thoracic oesophagus, you have to go for Rumenotomy and you have to take it out.

The Control:

Pasture bloats, what you have to do is you have to spill the or spray the oils on the pastures and you can also go for some sustained-release monensin, administration to the animals. then Feedlot bloat, we have to give crushed or whole grain to the animals rather than going for the powdering the concentrate. Generally, the strip gazing is to be advised, to avoid the frothy bloat and leguminous fodder always to be combined with the other fodders to avoid frothy bloat development.

In this class four, we have discussed Etiopathogenesis, Clinical signs, Diagnosis, Differential diagnosis, and Treatment of the pasture bloat, feedlot bloat, and secondary Ruminal Tympany.

In the next class lesson five, we are going to discuss the Vagus indigestion and Omasal impaction.

Thank you!