Distocia em ruminantes:estudo retrospectivo no período de 2019 a 2023 de casos atendidos no setor da clínica de ruminante do Hospital Veterinário Universitário da UFSM

Abstract

Dystocia is defined as a difficult birth that requires human intervention for delivery to occur. It is a routine complaint in the ruminant veterinary clinic and therefore it is important that the veterinarian is qualified in technical training to solve this problem and possible complications. In order to conduct a study of cases of this disorder in cattle and sheep treated at the HVUUFSM Ruminant Clinic, 857 clinical records were analyzed from January 2019 to December 2023. Data on the species, breed, age, procedures performed and the outcome of each case were selected and tabulated according to the type of intervention. Among the data evaluated, 52 cases of dystocia in ruminants were recorded, 22 cases in cattle (4.20% of cases) and 30 in sheep (8.57% of cases). Regarding the interventions performed, 44.23% were obstetric maneuvers, while cesarean sections accounted for 51.92% and fetotomy for 3.84%. It is worth highlighting the drop in the number of services in 2023, compared to the previous year. This was attributed to the great devaluation that meat and milk suffered suddenly. Of the cases of dystocia that occurred, there were 36 reported fetal deaths, in single and twin births. The high number of twin births in sheep, which comprise 30% of the total of the species, is noteworthy. Finally, it is necessary to highlight that the delay between the beginning of birth and the beginning of the intervention is one of the main variables that impacts the large number of deaths, both of the mother and the offspring.