Abstract
Clinical characteristics of limb fracture in 25 calves and growing cattle that had been treated during a 5-year period (from January 2006 to December 2010) were reviewed. The majority of the cases were Japanese Black cattle (n=19) followed by Holstein-Frisian (n=5) and Japanese Shorthorn cattle (n=1). The number of cases was similar by sex (13 males and 12 females). The age of the animals ranged from 0 to 13 months with 12 (48 %) cases under 1 month of age, and the body weight ranged from 23 to 300 kg with 15 (60 %) cases under 100 kg. The fracture types were diagnosed as humeral diaphyseal fracture (3 cases), radial or ulnar epiphyseal plate fracture (3 cases each), metacarpal diaphyseal (7 cases) and epiphyseal (4 cases) plate fracture, femoral neck fracture (2 cases), tibial diaphyseal fracture (3 cases), and metatarsal diaphyseal fracture (3 cases). The epiphyseal plate fractures in 7 cases were divided into three types by the Salter-Harris classification: typeⅠ (3 cases); typeⅡ (3 cases) and typeⅢ (1 case). Open fractures were observed in 4 cases of the metacarpal, tibial and metatarsal diaphyseal fractures. By the Gustilo classification, which assesses the severity of tissue damage and infection in open fracture, there were 2 typeⅠ cases and one case each for typesⅢa and Ⅲb. External coaptation using plastic fiber cast or full-limb cast was applied to 16 cases with fractures of the radius and ulna (3 cases), metacarpus (10 cases), tibia (1 case) and metatarsus (2 cases). Three calves with humeral fractures were treated by the typeⅠ external skeletal fixation with or without intramedullary pin fixation. Transfixation pinning and casting were used in 3 cattle with open fractures and in 1 case of tibial fracture. Two cases of femoral neck fracture were slaughtered without any treatment because of poor prognosis. Excluding these two cases of femoral neck fracture, the overall cure rate was 87% for the 23 limb fracture cases.
