In this episode, Dr. Fred Gingrich welcomes guest Dr. Brian Vander Ley to discuss the “new brisket disease”. This syndrome is coined “Bovine Congestive Heart Failure” or BCHF. Dr. Vander Ley discusses the history of this disease, clinical signs, and post-mortem findings. He also discusses the genetic risk factors that have been identified in a controlled-pair study. There have been 21 SNPS identified as significantly associated with BCHF and two that were most significant. These genetic markers are more common in British breeds, especially black and red Angus cattle. Dr. Vander Ley also discusses that genetic risk does not equal disease and future research will be needed to identify environmental, nutritional and other management factors that might increase risk of developing BCHF. 

Relevant publications:

 1. Neary JM, Booker CW, Wildman BK, Morley PS. Right-Sided Congestive Heart Failure in North American Feedlot Cattle. J Vet Intern Med. 2016 Jan-Feb;30(1):326-34. doi: 10.1111/jvim.13789. Epub 2015 Nov 8. PMID: 26547263; PMCID: PMC4913666.

 2. Heaton MP, Bassett AS, Whitman KJ, Krafsur GM, Lee SI, Carlson JM, Clark HJ, Smith HR, Pelster MC, Basnayake V, Grotelueschen DM, Vander Ley BL. Evaluation of EPAS1 variants for association with bovine congestive heart failure. F1000Res. 2019 Jul 25;8:1189. doi: 10.12688/f1000research.19951.1. PMID: 31543958; PMCID: PMC6733380.

 3. Moxley RA, Smith DR, Grotelueschen DM, Edwards T, Steffen DJ. Investigation of congestive heart failure in beef cattle in a feedyard at a moderate altitude in western Nebraska. J Vet Diagn Invest. 2019 Jul;31(4):509-522. doi: 10.1177/1040638719855108. Epub 2019 Jun 6. PMID: 31170901; PMCID: PMC6857034.