Serum cardiac troponin I concentrations in cattle with cardiac and noncardiac disorders.

Background: Making a clinical diagnosis of pericarditis in cattle is difficult and additional diagnostic tests are needed to evaluate cattle with suspected pericarditis. Serum cardiac troponin I (cTnI) concentrations are increased in cattle with pericarditis, but the utility of measuring serum cTnI concentrations in cattle with suspected pericarditis in cattle remains unclear.

Objectives: To determine if serum cTnI concentrations in cattle can be used to differentiate pericarditis from other cardiac disorders and noncardiac thoracic diseases.

Animals: Seventy-seven clinically diseased cattle and 19 healthy control cattle.

Methods: Serum cTnI concentrations were measured using an Immunlite Troponin I immunometric chemiluminescent assay in consecutive cases of postmortem-confirmed pericarditis (n=18), endocarditis (n=15), chronic suppurative pneumonia (n=13), congenital heart disease (n=10), reticulitis (n=3), mediastinal abscess (n=7), thymic lymphoma (n=6), and caudal vena cava thrombosis (n=5). Serum cTnI concentrations were measured in 19 healthy cattle.

Results: Although serum cTnI concentrations were significantly higher in cattle with pericarditis compared with healthy cattle, they were not significantly different from concentrations in cattle with endocarditis, congenital cardiac disease, mediastinal abscess, reticulitis, caudal vena cava thrombosis, or chronic suppurative pneumonia.

Conclusions: Serum cTnI cannot be used to distinguish cattle with pericarditis from cattle with other primary cardiac diseases. In addition, serum cTnI concentrations cannot distinguish between cattle with primary cardiac diseases and those with other noncardiac, intrathoracic disorders.