A comparison of blood from the jugular vein and coccygeal artery and vein of cows
Parker, B.J.; Blowey, R.W.
Veterinary Record 95(1): 14-18
1974
ISSN/ISBN: 0042-4900 PMID: 4432364 Document Number: 78435
A comparison was made between the levels of 10 components in bovine blood from the jugular vein, coccygeal artery and coccygeal vein, Inorganic phosphorus concentration in coccygeal arterial blood was similar to that in coccygeal venous blood but was considerably and significantly higher than that in jugular venous blood. Small but significant differences were found: between the levels in coccygeal arterial and coccygeal venous blood of packed cell volume (PCV) and glucose; between the levels in coccygeal vein and jugular vein of PCV, Hb, albumin, Ca, Mg, and K; between the levels in coccygeal artery and jugular vein of PCV, Hb, albumin, Ca, Mg and K. There was no uniform pattern in the variation of the concentration of non-esterified fatty acids between coccygeal arterial and coccygeal venous blood although the difference between the two values was sometimes considerable. Factors responsible for these differences, particularly saliva production, are discussed. Their variable influence precludes the use of a fixed ratio to interconvert component levels in the three vessels. The findings suggest that where blood component concentrations are being used to compare groups of cows or to indicate trends, and possibly also for individual clinical assessment, consideration should be given to the choice of blood vessels from which the samples are collected. For example, in this context, samples from the coccygeal vessels would seem to be more suitable than those from the jugular vein for determinations of inorganic phosphorus and potassium.