Reference values and influence of age on erythrogram of Murrah buffaloes

Erythrograms aid the veterinary practitioner in the diagnosis of diseases that affect domestic animals. However, hematological studies involving buffaloes are scarce, with little information in the literature on reference values for blood components in this species. Therefore, the objective of this study was analyze erythrograms of Murrah breed buffaloes of different ages, both males and females. Buffaloes in the study were distributed into four experimental groups, according to their ages: Group 1, animals from birth to 3 months of age (n=15); Group 2, animals from 4 to 6 months of age (n=50); Group 3, animals from 7 to 12 months of age (n=50); and Group 4, animals from 13 months to five years of age (n=50). The following values were obtained, for Group 1: 7.9x10(6) erythrocytes/mL (He), 13.0g/dL hemoglobin (Hb), hematocrit (Ht) 38.9%, Mean Corpuscular Volume (MCV) 49.0 fl, Mean Hemoglobin Corpuscular Concentration (MCHC) 33.6%, and Mean Corpuscular Hemoglobin (MCH) 16.4 pg; for Group 2: He7.1x10(6)/mL, Hb12.5g/dL, Ht 36.8%, MCV 52.4 fl; MCHC 33.9%; and MCH 17.8 pg; for Group 3: He 7.9x10(6)/mL, Hb12.0g/dL, Ht 33.8%, MCV 43.1 fl, MCHC 35.4%, and MCH 15.34pg; for Group 4: He 6.7x10(6)/mL, Hb 11.7g/dL, Ht 34.4%, MCV 53.4 fl, MCHC 34.4%, and MCH 17.4 pg. Statistical analysis of the results for the different age ranges permitted the conclusion that when the animals got older there was a decrease in the mean red cell counts (He), hemoglobin concentration (Hb) and hematocrit values (Ht). Although hematometric indexes showed significant variations in G3.

Age; erythrocytes; hemoglobin; hematocrit; Murrah buffaloes