What is Cefa-Lak?​
What is Mastitis?
Cefa-Lak is an antibiotic treatment used for the treatment of mastitis in lactating bovine animals. Cefa-Lak comes in a syringe-like tube that holds 10 mL of product. This product is also available to be purchased in boxes containing 12 tubes of Cefa-Lak. The main ingredient that is found in each 10-mL tube of Cefa-Lak is an antibiotic called cephapirin which is then placed in an oil gel (Boehringer Ingelheim, 2016). The product can only be purchased at a veterinary clinic and says for veterinary use only, but can be administered by any farmer as the Cefa-Lak product is very easy to use.
Bovine mastitis is known as a mammary gland inflammatory infection in the udder which is caused by bacterial infection and is a major disease amongst dairy cattle (Bradley, 2002). Mastitis will most often occur as white blood cells, also known as leukocytes enter into the mammary gland; this is a response to bacteria in the canal of the teat on the cow. Symptoms of bovine mastitis can include redness, hardness, and swelling of the udder as well as major discomfort to the cow. When mastitis is not properly treated, it may be fatal to the animal. Causative bacteria of mastitis can be classified as either major or minor pathogens, as well as contagious or environmental (Harmon, 1994). Contagious pathogens are mainly found in the mammary gland, along with the skin of udder of the infected cow in a dairy herd. Contagious pathogens are typically spread from cow to cow during milking times as equipment is placed on an infected cow and not disinfected properly before being placed on another cow. Environmental mastitis pathogens can be found in the areas that the cow inhabits, sources such as bedding, manure, soils, and contaminated water (AHBD, 2016).
Figure 4: Cefa-Lak Product from Boehringer Ingelheim (Source:http://embrunfarmvet.com/product-category/intra-mammary/)
Figure 3: Mastitis found in a mastitis detection strip cup (Source: http://sites.psu.edu/rclambergabel/tag/mastits/)
Boehringer Ingelheim. (2016). Retrieved November 15, 2016, from https://www.boehringer-ingelheim.com/
Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board. 2016. Retrieved November 16, 2016, from http://dairy.ahdb.org.uk/technical-information/animal-health-welfare/mastitis/pathogens-the-cause-of-mastitis/#VIYpx3arTIU
Harmon, R. (1994, July). Retrieved November 20, 2016, from, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022030294771538
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Bradley, A. (2002, November 22). Retrieved November 25, 2016, from http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1090023302907240