Sensor based time budgets in commercial Dutch dairy herds vary over lactation cycles and within 24 hours.

Cows from 8 commercial Dutch dairy farms were equipped with 2 sensors to study their complete time budgets of eating, rumination, lying, standing and walking times as derived from a neck and a leg sensor. Daily sensor data of 1074 cows with 3201 lactations was used from 1 month prepartum until 10 months postpartum. Farms provided data over a 5 year period.

Associations between body condition score, locomotion score, and sensor-based time budgets of dairy cattle during the dry period and early lactation.

Lameness, one of the most important disorders in the dairy industry, is related to postpartum diseases and has an effect on dairy cow welfare, leading to changes in cows' daily behavioral variables. This study quantified the effect of lameness on the daily time budget of dairy cows in the transition period. In total, 784 multiparous dairy cows from 8 commercial Dutch dairy farms were visually scored on their locomotion (score of 1-5) and body condition (score of 1-5).

Sensor based eating time variables of dairy cows in the transition period related to the time to first service.

In dairy cattle, reproductive diseases and infertility are some of the most important reasons for culling, where postpartum negative energy balance (NEB) reduces reproductive performance. This single cohort observational study reports the association between eating time and the interval between calving and first service in 2036 dairy cows on 17 commercial farms in The Netherlands. Cows were equipped with a commercially available neck sensor (Nedap, Groenlo, The Netherlands), that measured the time cows spent eating, from 28 days (d) before until 28 d after parturition.

High-confinement gallium nitride-on-sapphire waveguides for integrated nonlinear photonics.

We demonstrate a highly effective nonlinearity of 7.3  W m in a high-confinement gallium nitride-on-sapphire waveguide by performing four-wave mixing characterization at telecom wavelengths. Benefitting from a high-index-contrast waveguide layout, we can engineer the device dispersion efficiently and achieve broadband four-wave mixing operation over more than 100 nm.

Risk perceptions of public health and food safety hazards in poultry husbandry by citizens, poultry farmers and poultry veterinarians.

Differences in risk perceptions of public health and food safety hazards in various poultry husbandry systems by various stakeholder groups, may affect the acceptability of those husbandry systems. Therefore, the objective was to gain insight into risk perceptions of citizens, poultry farmers, and poultry veterinarians regarding food safety and public health hazards in poultry husbandry systems, and into factors explaining these risk perceptions. We surveyed risk perceptions of Campylobacter contamination of broiler meat, avian influenza introduction in laying hens, and altered dioxin levels in eggs for the most commonly used broiler and laying hen husbandry systems in Dutch citizens (n = 2,259), poultry farmers (n = 100), and poultry veterinarians (n = 41).

Long-Term Results of Endovascular Treatment of Atherosclerotic Stenoses or Occlusions of the Coeliac and Superior Mesenteric Artery in Patients With Mesenteric Ischaemia.

Introduction: Over the past decade, primary percutaneous mesenteric artery stenting (PMAS) has become an alternative to open revascularisation for treatment of mesenteric ischaemia. Institutes have presented favourable short-term outcomes after PMAS, but there is a lack of data on long-term stent patency.

Methods: One hundred and forty-one patients treated by PMAS for acute and chronic mesenteric ischaemia over an 8 year period were studied.

Localized surface plasmons in vibrating graphene nanodisks.

Localized surface plasmons are confined collective oscillations of electrons in metallic nanoparticles. When driven by light, the optical response is dictated by geometrical parameters and the dielectric environment and plasmons are therefore extremely important for sensing applications. Plasmons in graphene disks have the additional benefit of being highly tunable via electrical stimulation.

Kinetic study of uranium residue dissolution in ammonium carbonate media.

The purpose of this study was to determine the kinetics of the dissolution of a uranium residue in ammonium carbonate media. The residue is generated in the production of medical isotopes. The effects of parameters, such as varying peroxide and carbonate concentrations, dissolution time as well as temperature on the extraction rate have been separately studied.

Measures to improve dairy cow foot health: consequences for farmer income and dairy cow welfare.

Dairy farming in western countries with cubicle housing is an efficient way of dairy farming. Though, a disadvantage is the high prevalence and incidence of foot disorders (clinical and subclinical), which cause high economic losses and also seriously impair the welfare of dairy cattle. To point out the importance of reducing the amount and severity of foot disorders, advice to farmers should include information about the scale of the problem and the consequences in terms of economics and animal welfare.

Assessing the welfare impact of foot disorders in dairy cattle by a modeling approach.

Foot disorders are the main cause of dairy cow lameness and are considered to have a major impact on the welfare of dairy cattle. This study adopts a modeling approach, using a dynamic stochastic model, to provide more insight into the welfare impact of different types of foot disorders, both clinical and subclinical. The impact of specific foot disorders on welfare was assessed by simulating the incidence and duration of foot disorders and the pain associated with them.

Assessing economic consequences of foot disorders in dairy cattle using a dynamic stochastic simulation model.

Foot disorders are an important health problem in dairy cattle, in terms of economics and animal welfare. The incidence, severity, and duration of foot disorders account for their importance. Prevalence of both subclinical and clinical foot disorders is high.

The SNAQ(RC), an easy traffic light system as a first step in the recognition of undernutrition in residential care.

Objective: Development and validation of a quick and easy screening tool for the early detection of undernourished residents in nursing homes and residential homes.

Design: Multi-center, cross sectional observational study.

Setting: Nursing homes and residential homes.

The role of backyard poultry flocks in the epidemic of highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (H7N7) in the Netherlands in 2003.

In recent years, outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) viruses have caused the death of millions of poultry and of more than 200 humans worldwide. A proper understanding of the transmission dynamics and risk factors for epidemic spread of these viruses is key to devising effective control strategies. The aim of this study was to quantify the epidemiological contributions of backyard flocks using data from the H7N7 HPAI epidemic in the Netherlands in 2003.

The effect of digital lesions and floor type on locomotion score in Dutch dairy cows.

This study describes the effects of floor system, digital dermatitis (DD) and interdigital dermatitis and heel-horn erosion (IDHE) on locomotion performance in 225 dairy cows of 12 commercial dairy herds. Nine herds were kept in cubicle houses with concrete passageways (either solid, slatted, or grooved concrete) and three herds were kept in straw yards. Animals were at most five times examined at monthly intervals for lesion severity of DD and IDHE and for locomotion score.

Adenosine, added to St Thomas' Hospital cardioplegic solution, improves functional recovery and reduces irreversible myocardial damage.

St Thomas' Hospital cardioplegic solution is commonly used to arrest hearts during surgery. Pursuing the hypothesis that the cardioprotective properties of adenosine could be a beneficial adjunct to a solution containing high K+ and Mg2+, we tested a low and a high adenosine concentration added to this cardioplegic solution, aiming at improved recovery of function and energy status. We arrested 18 working rat hearts by a 3-minute infusion with the solution without or with 50 microM or 5 mM adenosine.

Applied epidemiology: another tool in dairy herd health programs?

Data bases of herd health programs concern data from individual animals mainly. Several parameters that determine herd performance can be calculated from these programs, and by comparing actual values with standard values, areas for further improvement of health (and production) can be advised. However, such advice is usually not backed up by the proper statistical analyses.

[Pilot study of the Deosan-RMTK (rapid mastitis test kit), a diagnostic test for the detection of cows with high cell count].

The Deosan-Rapid Mastitis Test Kit (RMTK) was evaluated in 226 lactating dairy cows on 6 farms. The Fossomatic method was used as reference standard for somatic cell counts in cows milk. The RMTK test-principle regards the reaction of the enzyme catalase released from cells in milk with the H2O2 in the RMTK-reagent.

Age and weight at first calving and subsequent performance in Dutch dairy cattle from rearing farms.

Calf-cow records from 1081 replacement heifers raised on 42 specialised rearing farms in the province of Noord-Brabant have been analysed. The predominant breed was Meuse-Rhine-Yssel (MRY). The objective was to study the relationship between weight and age at first calving and milk production in subsequent lactations, herd life span, dystocia and first calving interval.

Optical properties of human blood vessel wall and plaque.

Optical properties of blood vessel wall and plaque from human cadaver material are presented for the argon laser (514.5 nm), He-Ne laser (633 nm), and the Nd-YAG laser (1,060 nm) wavelengths. Measurements were performed with an integrating sphere arrangement and analyzed in terms of Kubelka-Munk absorption and scattering coefficients.