Many factors can contribute to the formation of urinary calculi, amongst these, the nutritional imbalances and the hardness of the water consumed by ruminants. The objective of this study was to identify the characteristics of properties which predispose to urolithiasis, through the evaluation in rural properties of the water, diet, and serum and urinary determinations of calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, chlorides, sodium, potassium, calculation of the fractional electrolyte excretion (FE), and creatinine, total protein serum levels, albumin and globulins. Samples of blood and urine of bovines, Guzerá, reared semi intensively, distributed for two groups, the first one, called urolithiasis group (Gu), composed by animals with history, clinical signals and ultrasonography confirmation of urolithiasis; the second one: controlled group (Gc), without history, nor signs of the illness. The bovines of the urolithiasis group consumed water with total hardness in the concentration of 166.0mg CaCO3/L. The diet of the animals of the Gu presented greater phosphorus concentration and inadequate Ca:P relation. The levels of serum and urinary phosphorus of the animals of the Gu were higher of the Gc, as well as the serum magnesium concentration (p<0,05). The creatinine concentrations didn't have an increase in the urolithiasis group, but occurred hypoproteinemia for hypoglobulinemia in the Gu (p<0,05). The FEs of calcium, phosphorus and sodium had not differed between the groups (p>0,05), but had significant reduction in the FEs of magnesium, chlorides and potassium of the urolithiasis group (p<0.05). The union of these factors contributed for urolithiasis occurrence, being the total hardness of the water and the high phosphorus diet concentration the major factors in genesis of the calculations in bovines.
Calculi; calcium; phosphorus; magnesium; urolithiasis; cattle
