Short communication: Hypernatremia in diarrheic calvesassociated with oral electrolyte administration in water and milk replacer in absence of access to water

摘要

A major goal in treatment of calves with diarrhea isto restore hydration and to correct metabolic acidosis.This can be achieved by the administration of oral electrolytesolutions (OES). However, the composition ofOES products and the administration protocols in practicevary widely, which can potentially compromise theefficacy and safety of these treatments. In particular,administration of OES in milk replacer (MR) and theabsence of water supply in young calves are not unusualand these conditions could compromise calf health. Inthis light, the objective of this study was to evaluatethe efficacy and safety of OES administered in MR andin water without access to water. Forty-five male Holsteincalves (16.6 ± 1.6 d of age and 45.4 ± 2.2 kg atarrival) were purchased from a collection center locatedin the Netherlands. After arrival, calves went throughan adaptation period of 4 d. Calves that developed diarrheawithin 6 d after the end of the adaptation periodwere enrolled in the study, and the remaining calveswere sold after being weaned. Upon morning detectionof abnormal fecal scores (d 1 starting point), calveswere blocked based on initial BW. Within each block,calves were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 treatments,including a control consisting of a small dose of whey(CON; n = 12) and an OES treatment (OES; n = 14).Treatments were blinded to the farm staff by randomlyassigning a letter to each treatment. Treatments weresimultaneously administered for 4 d in MR (2.5 L at0800 and 1730 h) and in water (3 L at 1300 and 2200h). Calves had no supplemental access to plain water.Blood samples were taken at 0600 h for 4 d, and fecalscores (0 = normal; 1 = watery feces) were assesseddaily at 0900 h for 15 consecutive days. Additionally,skin turgor and degree of enophthalmos were assessedat 1000 h from d 1 to 4 using a 3-level scoring system.Calves fed OES had a higher prevalence of diarrhea ond 3, 4, and 5 as well as higher prevalence of delayedskin turgor and increased degree of enophthalmos overthe 4 monitoring days. Diarrhea duration was longer incalves receiving OES than in calves receiving CON (4.2d vs. 2.1 d, respectively). The OES treatment resultedin hypernatremia (serum Na~+ >145 mmol/L) within 48h after the first OES administration. Hypernatremiawas linked with higher serum Cl− and urea concentrationsand thus higher serum osmolarity in OES calvescompared with CON calves. Administered under theseconditions, OES resulted in various degrees of hypernatremiaand a delayed recovery from diarrhea, thusdefeating the purpose of OES administration.