Serum Acute-Phase Inflammation Proteins as a Means of Assessing Effectiveness of Flunixin Meglumine Therapy for Bovine Respiratory Disease

The economic consequences of bovine respiratory disease (BRD) in weaned calves and stocker cattle are considerable in terms of loss from death, decreased growth performance, increased medication costs, and labor. It is a complex disease involving both viruses and bacteria. The inflammation that accompanies BRD can result in permanent lung damage. The goals of therapeutic treatment for BRD are to reduce or resolve the lung damage. It is often difficult to determine whether this has actually been accomplished. Treatment success is often evaluated by the abatement of clinical signs and reduction in body temperature. In some cases, subclinical inflammation may persist, resulting in permanent lung damage. Acute-phase proteins, such as α-glycoprotein (AGP) and haptoglobin (HPT), are elevated during acute or chronic periods of inflammation associated with infectious disease. The plasma concentration of these proteins can change up to 1,000-fold during disease episodes (Eckersall and Conner, 1988). Alsemgeest et al. (1994) reported on the value of measuring serum AGP and HPT in cattle to distinguish between acute, subacute and chronic inflammatory disease. They found that these values could be used to distinguish healthy animals from those with inflammation. Flunixin meglumine (Banamine, Schering-Plough Animal Health Corp., Union, NJ) is a nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug (NSAID) that has been widely used as a therapeutic agent in horses (Bottoms et al., 1981). It has recently been approved for use in conjunction with antibiotics for the treatment of BRD. Its primary mode of action is to inhibit inflammatory mediators such as cyclo-oxygenase and prostaglandins (Anderson et al., 1990). The effect of flunixin meglumine on serum AGP and HPT has not been reported. The purpose of this study was to determine the potential value of serum AGP and HPT levels to assess the therapeutic effectiveness of treating BRD with antibiotics and flunixin meglumine.