title: Field study on the relationship between teat thickness changes and intramammary infections.
abstract: The aim of this study was to describe the results of teat thickness measurement applied routinely in three commercial dairy herds and to evaluate the influence of machine-induced teat thickness changes on intramammary infection and the frequency of new infection. A total of 1018 fore milk samples and the same number of teat apex measurements have been evaluated. Overall, relative teat thickness changes were normally distributed (mean -0.16%, SD 10.15%), while a specific pattern could be observed within herds. Increases in teat thickness of > 5% were significantly associated with infection and new infection (odds ratio > 1), but the association was not significant when teat thickness decreased by more than 5%. When results were classified according to aetiology, analysis showed that coagulase-negative staphylococcal infections were significantly associated with both increases and decreases in teat thickness numerically greater than 5%.
authors.affiliation: Istituto di Malattie Infettive, CNR Centro Studio Patologia della Mammella, Università degli Studi di Milano, Italia.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zecconi
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Bronzo
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Piccinini
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Moroni
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ruffo
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002417:Cattle; D003612:Dairying / Q000295:instrumentation; D005260:Female; D008321:Mammary Glands, Animal / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000473:pathology*; D008414:Mastitis, Bovine / Q000473:pathology*; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000473:pathology / Q000662:veterinary*; D013290:Streptococcal Infections / Q000473:pathology / Q000662:veterinary*