Digital Vascular Variations in Normal and Laminitic Foot in Dairy Cattle

Lameness in cattle is of great importance to the cattle industry because of economic loss and animal welfare implication. Laminitis is regarded as an important predisposing factor in lameness caused by claw disorders. The various theories on the etiology of bovine laminitis have been reviewed before . Vasoconstriction and ischemia of peripheral microcirculation in the dermis of the bovine digit have been incriminated in the pathophysiology of the laminitis.
Normal and laminitic bovine limbs were collected from the slaughterhouse. The common dorsal digital artery of each limb was dissected and catheterized. Heparinized saline (2500 IU/ lit) was injected in each artery to wash up blood clots inside the vessels. Iodinated solution (lipidol- ultra fluid) was then injected under pressure and radiographs were taken from the limbs in lateral and dorsopalmar and dorsoplantar position ...