People live longer. There is a growing need to increase the knowledge of aging and of the need among the elderly for medical care in the near future. As a step towards meeting this need, a survey among the elderly in Skåne is made by the division of Geriatric Medicine in Malmö University Hospital. This survey is called Gott åldrande i Skåne, GÅS. A frequent decease among the elderly is Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI).

Clinical signs of hypocalcaemia in dairy cows are easily recognized, and a rapid response to treatment generally confirms the diagnosis in the field. However, clinical signs of other disorders in cows, such as toxemia, calving paralysis, or muscoskeletal injury, may mimic those associated with hypocalcaemia. Therefore, making a diagnosis of hypocalcaemia on the basis of clinical signs alone may be difficult. In ambulatory veterinary practices, cow-side tests are useful to make the diagnosis and prognosis easier. Kruuse?s Kalcium Test is a cow-side test based on the principle that calcium ions are necessary for coagulation of blood, and that chelation with EDTA prevent coagulation.

Platelets are important for the healing of damaged blood vessels since they have an importantpart to play in the coagulation process. At the same time, the blood must be kept fluid and notcoagulate at the wrong time. Therefore there are factors that effect the aggregation of plateletsin a positive or a negative way.Previous investigations have shown that platelets during stirring conditions produce reactiveoxygen species (ROS) that weaken the inhibiting effect of nitric oxides (NO) on platelets andthat the drug Dexamethasone (Dex) can reduce the ROS-production.The aim of this project was to investigate if glucocorticoids, in this case Dexamethasone,could restore the inhibiting effect of NO on platelets and if there was any decrease in ROS-production.The result of the ROS-measurements showed a great variance and it was difficult to draw anyconclusions from them, but a clear decrease in ROS, as previous reported, was not shown. In the aggregation experiments the inhibiting effect of NO was observed through the drug S-nitroso-N-acetylpenicillamine (SNAP), a NO-donator.From the aggregation experiments, the result seemed to be that SNAP during longerincubation time lost its inhibiting effect, probably because the cells become desensitized.With superoxid dismutase (SOD), the effect of SNAP increased, both in the experiment withlonger and shorter incubation times. Dex seemed to reinforce the aggregation in relation toboth SOD and SNAP.

Staphylococcus aureus is the most clinically important Staphylococcus species and is associated with high mortality in patients with positive blood cultures. S. aureus bacteria may cause a variety of disease manifestations ranging from minor skin infections to life-threatening conditions such as pneumonia, meningitis, osteomyelitis, endocarditis, toxic shock syndrome (TSS) and sepsis. This microorganism belonging to the gram positive cocci may also be part of the normal flora. In Sweden, penicillinase-stable penicillins are the primary alternatives to treat S.

Pyometra, chronic purulent metritis in metoestrus, is a common disease in intact bitches. About 25% of all bitches in Sweden have contracted the disease before ten years of age. Clinical signs of the disease are varied, and the course may be either slow or acute. The diagnosis is most commonly made by radiographical or ultrasonographical examination of the abdomen in combination with blood biochemical and hematological analyses. The safest and most efficient treatment of pyometra is surgical ovariohysterectomy.There is room for improvement of both diagnostic tools and possible prognostic indicators for pyometra.Mast cells are large leucocytes, with granule that contain inflammatory mediators.

The purpose with this study was to investigate how the behaviour and physiological parameters differ between high ranked and low ranked cows, and between cows in an automatic milking system verses conventional milking parlour. The study was carried out at the Kungsängen research Centre, Department of animal nutrition an management, Swedish University of Agriculture Sciences, Uppsala. Twelve cows, the six highest and the six lowest in social rank were selected from the automatic milking system for the experiment. Ten cows, the five highest and five lowest in social rank were selected from the conventional system. Blood samples were taken during milking and resting.

Staphylococcus aureus is the most clinically important Staphylococcus species and is associated with high mortality in patients with positive blood cultures. S. aureus bacteria may cause a variety of disease manifestations ranging from minor skin infections to life-threatening conditions such as pneumonia, meningitis, osteomyelitis, endocarditis, toxic shock syndrome (TSS) and sepsis. This microorganism belonging to the gram positive cocci may also be part of the normal flora. In Sweden, penicillinase-stable penicillins are the primary alternatives to treat S.

The calcium homeostasis in the body is normally strict regulated to be kept within very narrow limits. This regulation is due to the action of parathyroid hormone (PTH) which is synthesized in the chief cells of the parathyroid glands. In different diseases, the calcium homeostasis is disturbed and this could either be due to a dysfunction of the parathyroid gland itself, or it could have a completely different explanation. To investigate disturbed calciumhomeostasis, ionized calcium and PTH can be analyzed from a blood sample. There are a lot of different assays to measure PTH in humans.

?Tollarsjuka? is a disease with a suspected immunopathological background seen in Nova Scotia duck tolling retrievers. Pyrexia, lameness, stiffness and joint- or musclepain are typical clinical signs. The purpose of this study is to describe case histories from dogs with a possible evidence of ?tollarsjuka?. 18 private dogs were included in this report. Generalised stiffness, lameness and fatigue were the most frequent manifestations of the disease.

Establishing a reference interval for plasma fibrinogen in foals Fibrinogen concentrations were analysed in EDTA preserved blood plasma samples from 34 thoroughbred foals born in 2001 and 2002 at one stud farm. The foals were between 0 and 240 days old at the time of the sampling, and there were 19 fillies and 12 stallions in the group. The foals were examined for clinical symptoms of disease and their body temperature was measured before blood was sampled from the jugular vein. From totally 156 blood samples, 31 were selected as originating from clinically healthy foals, and used to determine a reference range for thoroughbred foals. Samples originating from foals showing clinical symptoms of disease or an abnormal body temperature at the time of sampling, were classified as coming from unhealthy animals.

Staphylococcus aureus is the most clinically important Staphylococcus species and is associated with high mortality in patients with positive blood cultures. S. aureus bacteria may cause a variety of disease manifestations ranging from minor skin infections to life-threatening conditions such as pneumonia, meningitis, osteomyelitis, endocarditis, toxic shock syndrome (TSS) and sepsis. This microorganism belonging to the gram positive cocci may also be part of the normal flora. In Sweden, penicillinase-stable penicillins are the primary alternatives to treat S.

Today, some kind of laboratory results is required for around 70% of the diagnostics and follow-ups for diseases. In many of the cases the time from sampling to a result is very critical. Therefore the discussion of how to improve this situation has begun. For many analyses serum has been the routine choice for a long time but now it is disputed. After blood collection in a serum tube it is essential to wait 30-60 minutes before centrifugation and analysis of the sample, a long time for someone in an acute state.

The aim of these two studies was to investigate the possible physiological, behavioural and emotional changes that appear after human-horse interactions and also to find an explanation to why they occur. One aspect that is discussed is whether the wellbeing of humans can be coupled to interacting with horses and of how the animals respond to the interaction. The first study was performed on 9 horses and their owners, both parts being subjects to registrations during 4 different interaction treatments. The second study was performed on 6 horses with registrations only being performed on the horses during 2 different treatments. Nine horses underwent 3 different treatments all performed by their owners (H = stroking of the horses forehead, B = brushing and M = stimulation of the withers) in addition to a control round (K). Each treatment lasted for 4 minutes but observations were performed until after 45 minutes from start.

The aim of this review was to examine scientific literature to determine what kind of physiological and psychological benefits derive from human-dog interaction, as well as attempt to uncover a possible mechanism behind these benefits and whether or not they are mutually beneficial. A growing body of research indicates there are physiological and psychological benefits associated with human-dog interaction. Significant cardiovascular benefits have been linked with human-dog interaction, as have lowered blood pressure, cortisol and heart rate. Interaction with dogs is often associated with a feeling of social support and well-being, and dogs also seem to facilitate social interaction between people. Dogs? ability to buffer and reduce stress is also well documented. A strong indication was found regarding a relationship between physical contact and benefits associated with human-dog interaction.

Post-anaesthetic myopathy (PAM) is a serious occasional complication of general anaesthesia in horses. It causes not only pain and suffering to the horse, but also suffering (trauma) to the owner with increased veterinary costs. In the worst case PAM can be fatal. The anaesthetic nurse must know which parameters have to be taken into consideration in the prevention of PAM, to be able to prevent it, and use that knowledge for the animals safety. The aim of this literature review was to investigate and make a presentation of the factors and measurements associated with PAM, with focus on how to monitor these measurements to prevent it from happening, and the advice a Veterinary nurse can give to the horse owner regarding this condition. According to literature there a few factors that greatly increase the risk of PAM, these include- hypotension, periods less than 60 mmHg significantly increases the risk.