Associations between different udder health groups defined based on a combination of total and differential somatic cell count and the future udder health status of dairy cows.

Mastitis, in particular in its subclinical form, which may spread unnoticeable within a herd, continues to be a major challenge in the dairy industry. Somatic cell count (SCC) is a broadly used proxy for subclinical mastitis. The recently introduced Differential SCC (DSCC) representing the combined proportion of polymorphonuclear neutrophils and lymphocytes as a percentage of total SCC, can be used in combination with SCC to categorise cows into four different udder health groups (UHG) depending on actual test day results: UHG A: healthy/normal, ≤200,000 cells/mL and DSCC ≤65 %; B: suspicious, ≤200,000 cells/mL and DSCC >65 %; C: (subclinical) mastitis, >200,000 cells/mL and DSCC >65 %; D: chronic/persistent mastitis, >200,000 cells/mL and DSCC ≤65 %.

Investigation of dairy cow performance in different udder health groups defined based on a combination of somatic cell count and differential somatic cell count.

Mastitis is still the costliest disease in milk production. In particular, its subclinical form, which may spread unnoticeably within a herd, is a major challenge. Somatic cell count (SCC) is broadly used as an indicator for mastitis and thus the basis for udder health management programmes, e.