Milk fatty acids as possible biomarkers to diagnose hyperketonemia in early lactation

Summary

The aim of this study was to assess the potential of milk fatty acids as diagnostic tool for hyperketonemia of 93 dairy cows in a 3 × 2 factorial arrangement. Cows were fed a glucogenic or lipogenic diet and originally were intended to be subjected to a 0-, 30-, or 60-d dry period. Nevertheless, some of the cows, which were intended for inclusion in the 0-d dry period group, dried off spontaneously. Milk was collected in wk 2, 3, 4, and 8 of lactation for milk fat analysis. Blood was sampled from wk 2 to 8 after parturition for ß-hydroxybutyrate (BHBA) analysis. Cases were classified into 2 groups: hyperketonemia (BHBA =1.2 mmol/L) and nonhyperketonemia (BHBA