Escherichia (E) coli is one of the most common udder pathogens associated with acute clinical Mastitis in Swedish dairy cows. The aim of this study is to review some of the existing literature on E coli Mastitis from a Swedish perspective. The bacteria, its most important characteristics, and diagnostics under field conditions is covered, as well as what happens during infection, how E coli affects the cow and which consequences this have. Clinical symptoms associated with E coli Mastitis are described and information on when these cases of Mastitis usually occurs is given. Risk factors in the cow?s enviroment are described as well as the importance of the cow?s immune defence.

Background: Mastitis in dairy cattle is a common ailment worldwide. A cause of Mastitis can be bacteria such as Escherichia coli. Mastitis is not a deadly ailment and sometimes the dairy cows show no symptoms but if certain virulence genes are present in the bacteria that cause the Mastitis, the bacteria can be transmitted to humans and cause severe diseases. The potential presence of enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) in particular would be a major concern for human health.Aim: The aim for this study was to analyze the presence of virulence genes known to be present in E.coli strains isolated from dairy cows with Mastitis in Sweden.Method: A Qiagen BIO ROBOT EZ1 was used to purify DNA from 90 bacterial cultures. A panel of virulence genes were amplified and biotinylated from the purified DNA by PCR and an E.coli based DNA microarray was used to detect presumed virulence genes in E.coli.Result: There were no samples that had all the genes traditionally used to classify E.coli as EHEC or potential EHEC.

The objective of this work was to evaluate and compare three field methods for detection of Mastitis, California Mastits Test (CMT), DeLaval cell counter DCC (DCC) and FMA2001 Farm Milk Analyzer (FMA2001). Furthermore, to investigate at what cell count level clinical symptoms of Mastitis are seen, and finally to check if the clinical findings and cell counts could be related to bacteriological findings. DCC and FMA2001 are new analytic instruments to be used on dairy farms for detection of Mastitis. CMT has been a widely used cow-side-test of milk quality in Mastitis control efforts, but it cannot be used for estimating cell counts in scientific studies or investigations. Two hundred and eight quarter milk samples from 52 cows were analysed with DCC and CMT, and 168 of these samples with FMA2001. Microbiological examination was done on 38 milk samples with CMT scores of 4 and 5.

Automatic milking systems (AMS) have been in commercial use since 1992 and have since 1998 increased a lot. The objective of this study has been to examine the development of udder health on farms converting to AMS. The study also included a comparison of how udder health developed depending on how farms handled cows with Mastitis. This was because farms choose to either milk cows with Mastitis in a separate barn or in the milking robot. Other studies on udder health on commercial farms have shown that somatic cell count increases both among individual cows and in the bulk milk when converting to an AMS. No differences between before and after converting to AMS in the proportion of cows treated for Mastitis can be found in the literature.

Cows affected by Mastitis caused by Klebsiella (K.) pneumoniae often become seriously ill. In some cases herdproblems may occur. Contaminated bedding material is considered to be one of the most common risk factors for klebsiella Mastitis. In a recently performed study in USA it was found, however, that more than 80 % of healthy, lactating dairy cows excreted K. pneumoniae in faeces.

Mastitis is an important disease in dairy cattle. It is very costly for the farmers and affects a large number of animals. Few studies have been made investigating the outcome of treatment for acute clinical Mastitis under Swedish conditions, and it can be problematic to use the results in foreign studies since both the microbial flora as well as treatments may be different from the situation in Sweden. In this project we have investigated data on clinical Mastitis and antibiotic treatment in the dairy herd at Jällaskolan, Uppsala based on recordings during the last ten years. The material includes both Swedish Red (SRB) and Swedish Holstein (SLB) breeds, which have been kept at the farm under similar conditions.

The aim with the literature study is to inform about the risks that exists in large dairy farms(with focus on Mastitis and hoof health) and to inform about the milk industry in Sweden.Personal comments from two study visits (Nötcenter Viken and Vadsbo Mjölk AB) arelinked together with the literature and forms into a discussion regarding sustainableagriculture versus the milk cow's welfare.The profitability for Sweden's milk farmers have decreased because of the decreased milkprice and current inflation. This leads to an increase in herdsize in order to make a profit.The milk cow herds in Sweden becomes fewer year by year and the herdsize increases. Theincreased herdsize can cause a decrease in the time the farmer spends per animal. This canaffect early disease detection and prolong the animals suffering.Swedish Board of Agriculture published (2008) statistics showing that today's milk cow ismedicated primarily because of two reasons; Mastitis or hoof problems. Mastitis is thereason to two thirds of all treatments that are carried out.

The aim with the literature study is to inform about the risks that exists in large dairy farms(with focus on Mastitis and hoof health) and to inform about the milk industry in Sweden.Personal comments from two study visits (Nötcenter Viken and Vadsbo Mjölk AB) arelinked together with the literature and forms into a discussion regarding sustainableagriculture versus the milk cow's welfare.The profitability for Sweden's milk farmers have decreased because of the decreased milkprice and current inflation. This leads to an increase in herdsize in order to make a profit.The milk cow herds in Sweden becomes fewer year by year and the herdsize increases. Theincreased herdsize can cause a decrease in the time the farmer spends per animal. This canaffect early disease detection and prolong the animals suffering.Swedish Board of Agriculture published (2008) statistics showing that today's milk cow ismedicated primarily because of two reasons; Mastitis or hoof problems. Mastitis is thereason to two thirds of all treatments that are carried out.

Dairy farming in Uganda provides a source of food, employment and income. Previous studies have revealed high frequencies of bovine Mastitis, a costly disease for the dairy farmer. The aims of this study were to investigate the bacteriological panorama in milk from udder quarters with clinical (CM) and subclinical Mastitis (SCM) and to determine the antimicrobial susceptibility in staphylococcal isolates. Further, we intended to establish the prevalence of subclinical Mastitis and to investigate some environmental factors and animal properties that might influence the frequency of Mastitis. For CM, farmers made contact with the members of this study when recognizing an animal with CM.

Mastitis in dairy cows is an emerging and challenging disease in the tropics, including India. Nation-wide reports suggest that the incidence of clinical Mastitis varies from 3.94% to 23.25%, and for subclinical Mastitis from 15.78% to 81.60%. In Assam, a northeastern province of India, dairy is an essential part of the mixed farming system that exists in the state, but the milk yield is far below domestic standards. In 2009-2010, International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and local associates started to develop a training program for local farmers in Assam, in order to enhance the informal bovine dairy sector in and around Guwahati, India. The project continued until mid-2013.

This study was performed to investigate the possibility to use ultrasonography as a diagnostic tool for sub-clinical Mastitis in dairy cows. Five cows with high cell counts, and four cows with low cell counts were selected as cases and controls, respectively, and their udders examined with ultrasound during a 5 week period. The image of the udders of cows with high cell counts exhibited small, hyper-echoic, rounded foci, approximately 1 cm in diameter, near the milk cisterns and the base of the teats. These changes were not found consistently in all cows with high cell count, however. Ultrasonography may be a valuable complementary tool in the diagnosis of sub-clinical Mastitis in dairy cow, but more cases need to be monitored before its full value can be ascertained..

Subclinical Mastitis (SCM) is a well-known problem in the dairy sector, where it causes severe economic losses mainly due to reduced milk production. This is a problem not only in the western world but also in developing countries. Surveys from different developing countries have shown a SCM prevalence of 52.4 ? 88.6 % at cow level and 26.7 ? 63.2 % at quarter-level. To combat Mastitis is important to optimize the milk production of the cow.

Concentration of protein in bovine milk is one of the most significant milk quality parameters, to a large extent determining the price for milk to the producer. Mastitis is a common disease among dairy cows, negatively affecting not only milk yield but also milk protein composition. Milk from mastitic cows tends to have lower cheese yield, negatively affected processability properties and sensory quality, due to changed protein quality and composition. Poorer milk protein quality would have an economically negative impact on dairy industry. Only few studies have investigated the short term effects of Mastitis on milk protein composition.

Mastitis, inflammation in the udder tissue, caused by S. aureus is a big problem in dairy cattle production. It causes suffering for the cow and curing or replacing the infected cow is costly for the farmer. It is known that beef cattle also suffer from Mastitis caused by S. aureus.

Good feeding practices are a basic aspect of good calf health. During the calf's first few months the calf is fed with purchased milk replacer or raw milk straight from the cow. On all farms, it will be a surplus of milk that may not be delivered to the dairy for various reasons. Milk that may not be supplied to the dairy includes colostrum and milk with unnormal properties, including milk from cows suffering from Mastitis. This study investigated the possibility of improving the milk by pasteurization in order to secure its use as feed for calves and thereby obtain an improved calf health.