Evaluating the Impact of Clinical Mastitis on Ovarian Morphometry and the Effectiveness of the Synchronisation Protocol in Dairy Cows

Title (eng)
Evaluating the Impact of Clinical Mastitis on Ovarian Morphometry and the Effectiveness of the Synchronisation Protocol in Dairy Cows
Author
Gabija Lembovičiūtė
Large Animal Clinic, Veterinary Academy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Tilžės Str. 18, LT-47181 Kaunas, Lithuania
Author
Vytuolis Žilaitis
Large Animal Clinic, Veterinary Academy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Tilžės Str. 18, LT-47181 Kaunas, Lithuania
Author
Walter Baumgartner
Clinical Centre for Ruminant and Camelid Medicine, University of Veterinary Medicine, Veterinaerplatz 1, A-1210 Vienna, Austria
Author
Arūnas Rutkauskas
Large Animal Clinic, Veterinary Academy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Tilžės Str. 18, LT-47181 Kaunas, Lithuania
Author
Greta Šertvytytė
Large Animal Clinic, Veterinary Academy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Tilžės Str. 18, LT-47181 Kaunas, Lithuania
Author
Ramūnas Antanaitis
Large Animal Clinic, Veterinary Academy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Tilžės Str. 18, LT-47181 Kaunas, Lithuania
Abstract (eng)
Inflammatory processes within the body have been hypothesised to be causative agents of various health complications, including reproductive issues. This study investigates the effects of mastitis on ovarian morphometry and fertility outcomes while also comparing the effectiveness of different synchronisation protocols in affected cows. Healthy multiparous Holstein dairy cows, in their second to fifth lactations and with an average milk yield of approximately 12,000 kg in the preceding lactation, were selected for this study. The average milk yield per lactation was approximately 12,000 kg, with an average daily milk yield of 30 kg. The aim of this study was to determine the impact of mastitis on the reproductive cycle, ovarian morphometry, and function in dairy cows, as well as its effect on synchronisation efficiency. This study focused on both clinically healthy cows and those diagnosed with clinical mastitis postpartum. Three different synchronisation protocols—OvSynch, G7G, and Presynch—were evaluated at 60 days in milk (DIM). A total of 110 cows were included in this study, with 53 being clinically healthy and 57 affected by mastitis. The results indicated that inflammation affects ovarian morphometric parameters such as the area and the number of functional structures. In addition, the G7G protocol was observed to result in higher conception rates in cows suffering from mastitis following the second insemination. This study demonstrated that cows that developed mastitis within the first 30 DIM exhibited higher conception rates after the first insemination compared to those in cows that developed mastitis later in lactation.
Keywords (eng)
OestrusMastitisSynchronisation Protocol
Type (eng)
journal article
Language
[eng]
Persistent identifier
https://phaidra.vetmeduni.ac.at/o:4721
DOI
10.3390/ani15152215
Is in series
Title (deu)
Animals
Volume
15
Issue
15
ISSN
2076-2615
Issued
2025
Number of pages
18
Publication
MDPI AG
Version type (eng)
version of record (published version)
Date issued
2025
Access rights (eng)
open access
License
CC BY 4.0 International
Rights statement (eng)
© 2025 by the authors