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Some Observations on Beef Cattle Affected with Generalized Edema or Anasarca Due to Vitamin A Deficiency

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Animal Husbandry Division, Bureau of Animal Industry, United States Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, Maryland

Statistics are presented showing that 651 beef carcasses were condemned for generalized edema or anasarca by Federal meat inspectors during the period of July, 1941 to December, 1946, inclusive. Other symptoms of vitamin A deficiency were found to be prevalent among cattle with anasarca in the Corn Belt area. This edematous condition was observed to occur in cattle after a long fattening period in dry lot when fed either stored or new corn in combination with a roughage of low carotene content such as oat hav or straw. Alfalfa hay was highly effective in curing the condition. It is concluded, therefore, that the major dietary error in the production of this deficiency disease is the exclusive use of low-carotene roughages throughout the feeding period rather than the use of old yellow corn.

Cases of anasarca were readily produced experimentally by feeding a carotene-deficient ration or a grain ration containing 80% of new-crop yellow corn together with oat straw as roughage.

Results of blood studies made on field and experimental cases of anasarca produced by vitamin A deficiency indicate a marked similarity in the 2 conditions. Affected animals showed: (1) deficiency levels of blood plasma vitamin A and carotene and a decrease in plasma vitamin C as the vitamin A deficiency progressed, (2) an increase in total plasma globulin due usually to a marked increase in plasma fibrinogen with smaller increases in the other globulin fractions, (3) a decrease in plasma albumin, and (4) an increase in total plasma nitrogen.

In the serum of affected cattle, calcium and inorganic phosphorus decreased slightly; phosphatase activity was reduced while magnesium was relatively unchanged.

It is pointed out that the edema of vitamin A deficiency in cattle appears not to be entirely related to a lowered colloid osmotic pressure of the plasma through reduction in the albumin, since the increases in other protein fractions are estimated to compensate largely in this respect for the decrease in albumin.

Manuscript received 28 July 1947.