Serum cardiac troponin I concentration increases in sheep with uterine torsion

Abstract

It is currently unclear whether myocardial damage occurs in sheep suffering from uterine torsion. Increased serum cardiac troponin I (cTnI) concentration is considered as the gold standard indicator of myocardial damage. The purpose of this study was to investigate the serum cTnI concentrations in sheep with uterine torsion and the relationship of serum cTnI concentrations in cases of uterine torsion to hematological and biochemical variables, the degree of uterine torsion and the estimated duration of labor. A total of 32 sheep were included in the study and were assigned to uterine torsion (UT, n = 14), other types of dystocia requiring cesarean section or manual assistance (OTD, n = 11), and unassisted vaginal delivery (UVD, n = 7) groups based on inclusion criteria. Advia Centaur TnI-Ultra, a human-specific immunoassay, was used to measure serum cTnI concentrations. The median serum cTnI concentration was significantly higher in the UT group than in the OTD and UVD groups (UT: 0.507 ng/mL (0.040–18.521); OTD: 0.044 ng/mL (0.016–0.135); UVD: 0.036 ng/mL (0.023–0.059); p < 0.001). In uterine torsion cases, serum cTnI concentrations correlated positively with serum CK (r = 0.556, p = 0.042), AST (r = 0.613, p = 0.022) and LDH activities (r = 0.609, p = 0.024), and degree of uterine torsion (r = 0.563, p = 0.036). The results indicated that uterine torsion leads to an increase in serum cTnI concentration. Further investigations can be undertaken to explore possible factors contributing to the release of cTnI from the myocardium into the circulation and whether the myocardial damage in uterine torsion is reversible or irreversible.