The Quantitative Determination of Fibrinogen in Normal Bovine Plasma and in Cows with Inflammatory Conditions

Abstract

The quantitative determination of fibrinogen in normal plasma and in cows with inflammatory conditions. A rapid method for the quantitative determination of fibrinogen in bovine plasma is described. The method was employed in the determination of normal values in a material consisting of 100 cows and 50 calves and young animals of various ages. The mean value of the groups of cows was approximately 0.550 g/100 ml. For young animals it was somewhat lower and for cows in the last month of gestation moderately higher than in the other groups. The last part of the experiment involves the determination of the fibrinogen and γ-globulin levels in the plasma of 28 hospitalized cows with various inflammatory conditions. Group A in the material contained animals which were clinically cured and Group B animals that died or were killed. Both groups showed a considerable increase in the fibrinogen level. In Group A the mean value fell back to approximately the normal range while in Group B it remained constantly elevated. The sedimentation rate, SR, in human blood is primarily influenced by the fibrinogen content of the plasma. The SR in bovine blood is very low, and the test is therefore of little significance in diagnostic work. In conclusion, the possibility of using the fibrinogen determination in cattle for the same purpose as the SR in human blood is discussed.