Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Sassari, Via Vienna 2, 07100Sassari, Italy.
Loc. Perdas Arbas, 08100Nuoro, Italy.
J Dairy Res. 2020 Feb;87(1):56-59. doi: 10.1017/S0022029920000023. Epub 2020 Feb 3.
In this Research Communication we report the measurement of total blood calcium concentration with a water hardness test kit (WHTK) in dairy cattle and compare the results to a reference method. The study was carried out on 107 Holstein Friesian cows from three commercial dairy farms in Sardinia (Italy). Blood samples were collected ≤7 d from calving and total serum calcium concentration was determined using a biochemical analyzer and a WHTK. The relationship between the laboratory results and the WHTK results was investigated using Spearman's rank correlation test and simple linear regression was determined. Sensitivity, specificity, negative and positive predictive values, intra and inter-assay coefficient of variation were also calculated. The test values were highly correlated with the laboratory values (R2 = 0.72, P < 0.001). Sensitivity and specificity were respectively 88 and 83% for the WHTK and intra and inter-assay coefficients of variation were 7.3 and 11.3% respectively. The WHTK was identified as a potential on-farm tool for monitoring early postpartum Ca concentrations at herd level.
在本研究通讯中，我们报告了用水硬度测试试剂盒（WHTK）测量奶牛全血钙浓度，并将结果与参考方法进行了比较。该研究在撒丁岛（意大利）的三个商业奶牛场的 107 头荷斯坦弗里生奶牛中进行。在产犊后 ≤7 天采集血样，并使用生化分析仪和 WHTK 测定总血清钙浓度。使用 Spearman 秩相关检验研究实验室结果和 WHTK 结果之间的关系，并确定简单线性回归。还计算了敏感性、特异性、阴性和阳性预测值、批内和批间变异系数。测试值与实验室值高度相关（R2 = 0.72，P < 0.001）。WHTK 的敏感性和特异性分别为 88%和 83%，批内和批间变异系数分别为 7.3%和 11.3%。WHTK 被确定为一种潜在的牧场工具，可用于监测群体水平产后早期的 Ca 浓度。
