A Descriptive Study of the Bovine Stomach Using Computed Tomography

Received: Revised: Accepted: September 05, 2013 January 29, 2014 June 08, 2014 The aim of this study was to create a descriptive atlas of the detailed anatomical features of the bovine forestomach compartments using computed tomography (CT). CT images were respectively selected from the imaging database of twenty healthy Holstein Friesian calves aged from 5 to 7 months. This database was obtained from the Veterinary Medical Centre of Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine. For each cow, transverse, sagittal and dorsal plane images were obtained. All CT images of the bovine forestomach were labelled and serially interpret using correlated cross-sectional anatomical references. The structures that were identified in the abdominal cavity include the stomach with its four compartments (rumen, reticulum, omasum and abomasum), small and large intestines, liver, spleen, kidneys and aorta abdominalis. There was good differentiation of the anatomical landmarks between various forestomach compartments on CT images. The location and size of the forestomach parts was depicted using soft tissue window. In conclusion, multi-slice CT provided well defined baseline reference images for the bovine stomach compartments for educational, research and radiological purposes. ©2014 PVJ. All rights reserved