Therapeutic effects of simultaneous use of glucose and insulin in ketotic dairy cows

A glucose tolerance test was carried out on 8 ketotic dairy cows and 5 healthy dairy cows after injection of 500 ml of 50% glucose solution into the jugular vein. The blood insulin concentration increased from 6.3 microU/ml before glucose injection to 62.5 microU/ml after injection in the healthy group and from 3.0 to 22.9 microU/ml in the ketotic group. Insulin concentration before glucose injection was lower, and its increase after glucose injection was smaller, in the ketotic group. Five hundred milliliters of 50% glucose solution were administered to 15 ketotic cows by intravenous infusion once daily from d 1 to 6, and 200 U of insulin were injected subcutaneously in 8 of these cows from d 2 to 6. In the group administered insulin with glucose, the blood glucose concentration, insulin concentration, and insulin to glucagon ratio (50.5 mg/dl, 6.2 microU/ml, and .09, respectively) on d 6 were significantly higher than those for cows administered glucose only (36.3 mg/dl, 3.0 microU/ml, and .04, respectively). Also, the blood ketone bodies and free fatty acid concentrations on d 6 were significantly lower in the group receiving glucose plus insulin (22.1 microU/ml and .79 meq/L, respectively) than in the group receiving glucose alone (63.8 microU/ml and .98 meq/L, respectively). Thus, the simultaneous use of glucose and insulin is considered to be useful for the treatment of ketosis in dairy cows.