The antibiotic treatment of calf diarrhea in four European countries: a survey

Eibl, C., Bexiga, R., Viora, L. , Guyot, H., Félix, J., Wilms, J., Tichy, A. and Hund, A. (2021) The antibiotic treatment of calf diarrhea in four European countries: a survey. Antibiotics, 10(8), e910. (doi: 10.3390/antibiotics10080910)

Abstract

Neonatal calves are commonly affected by diarrhea caused by different pathogens, but not always bacteria. Yet, antibiotics are routinely used as a treatment to an unknown extent. It was our goal to survey antibiotic use for the treatment of neonatal calf diarrhea in different countries and to identify influencing factors. A total of 873 farmers and veterinarians in Austria, Belgium, Portugal, and Scotland participated in a voluntary online survey. The data were analyzed using classification and regression tree analyses and chi2 tests. Overall, 52.5% of the participants stated that they use antibiotics when treating neonatal calf diarrhea. Of those, 27% use them always, and 45% use highest priority critically important antibiotics. The most important factor differentiating antibiotic use practices was the country the participants were from, which could be due to regulatory differences between the countries. All antibiotic products stated were licensed for use in cattle, but several were not licensed for the treatment of diarrhea in calves. Our study shows that there is an urgent need for more scientific evidence to define best practices for the treatment of neonatal calf diarrhea. Furthermore, consensual criteria for antibiotic therapy must be defined, and targeted training for farmers and veterinarians must be provided.

• Item Type: Articles
• Keywords: Neonatal calf diarrhea, survey, antibiotics, HPCIA.
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Viora, Dr Lorenzo

Creator Roles

Viora, L.: Conceptualization, Methodology, Validation, Resources, Writing – review and editing, Project administration

• Authors: Eibl, C., Bexiga, R., Viora, L., Guyot, H., Félix, J., Wilms, J., Tichy, A., and Hund, A.
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine
• Journal Name: Antibiotics
• Publisher: MDPI
• ISSN: 2079-6382
• ISSN (Online): 2079-6382
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2021 The Authors
• First Published: First published in Antibiotics 10(8):e910