Bacillary Endocarditis of Cattle Detected at an Abattoir

Abstract

Endocarditis was found in 22 (0.016%) of 131, 867 cattle examined at a municipal abattoir in Hiroshima over a period from 1965 to 1972. Its principal symptoms were anemia, pyrexia, edema, cardiac murmur, emaciation, and dyspnea.
Hyperplastic growths occurred most frequently to the tricuspid valve, often to the bilateral atrioventricular valves, and sometimes to the pulmonary valve. They were like cauliflower, with their surface covered with granulation tissue, fibrous tissue, and regenerative epithelial tissue.
Corynebacterium pyogenes and hemolytic streptococci were isolated from heart, liver, spleen, kidney, and carcase. Four Corynebacterium and four Streptococcus strains isolated were selected and examined for sensitivity to six antibiotics. They were highly sensitive to chloramphenicol and erythromycin. Many of them were resistant to penicillin.