What is kinky back?
Kinky back is scientifically defined as Bacterial Chondronecrosis with Osteomyelitis (BCO) and is a complex syndrome mostly affecting broilers with some episodes in turkeys as well. The syndrome manifests itself with symptoms like lameness, starting at 3 weeks of age and resulting in lowered feed intake, reduced weight gain, and up to 5-7% mortality. The rapid growth of heavy birds during the first phase of life is often accompanied by an inadequate skeleton’s development. This may result in skeletal disorders and the development of BCO lesions primarily located at the flexible thoracic vertebra, the proximal head of femora, and of the tibiae. Though kinky back is not an infectious disease, frequent infections due to commensal pathogens are commonly observed at the lesion level. In fact, because of the mechanical stress, several micro-fractures and clefts are formed in cartilages and bones, with subsequent local ischemia and necrosis, and disruption of the endothelial lining, finally favoring blood-borne bacteria colonization, infections, and abscesses formation. Enterococcus cecorum is the most frequent opportunistic pathogens isolated in BCO. This Gram-positive, facultatively anaerobic coccus, is normally part of the intestinal microbiota: it is spread in the environment through the feces, and birds are colonized by oral ingestion in the first days of life. Any stress (temperature, overcrowding, dietary change, infections, etc.) can alter the microbiota and gut mucosa permeability. When intestinal inflammation occurs, epithelial tight junctions integrity is disrupted, with the alteration of gut mucosa permeability. Leaky tight junctions provide paracellular passages so that bacteria can cross the cellular monolayer and reach the bloodstream causing systemic infections. A peculiarity of E. cecorum is its predilection for cartilages and bones, resulting in abscesses and kinky back syndrome in poultry.
Antibiotics are not the solution, prevention is the key
Antibiotic treatment is possible but, in most cases, symptoms are minimally reduced. Moreover, antibiotic resistance and pathogenicity are constantly increasing in E. cecorum strains and field-isolated, making prevention and treatment even less effective. The best approach to this pathology is a coordinated approach to prevention, which includes particular attention to housing conditions, litter humidity, and environmental stress, to minimize the mechanical stress to the immature skeleton of chickens and bacterial proliferation. Also diet composition, and in particular vitamin D and minerals, play an important role in bone structure development. Nonetheless, the importance of maintaining a well-balanced intestinal microflora and mucosa functionality, while keeping at minimum local inflammation, might be the key to a new approach to kinky back.
Can diet be a preventive tool?
The key to a new approach to kinky back might be the use of nutrition to maintain a well-balanced intestinal microflora and mucosa functionality while keeping at minimum local inflammation. AviPlus®P is a feed additive useful for this purpose: it is specially designed to exploit the synergistic effect of organic acids and nature identical compounds. As antimicrobials, AviPlus®P active ingredients have different but complementary modes of action: organic acids passively enter the bacterial cells with both bacteriostatic and bactericidal activity, while nature identical compounds create pores in the bacterial membrane with a direct bactericidal effect, facilitating the entry of organic acids. The peculiar microencapsulation technology of AviPlus®P ensures the release of its ingredients all along the intestinal tract, where the most microbial colonization occurs. Furthermore, both organic acids and nature identical compounds have anti-inflammatory properties and they act in a synergistic way also in this case. AviPlus®P improves animal intestinal health enhancing the mucosal barrier function and epithelial integrity, key elements to control bacterial translocation: healthier gut means healthier and more productive animals.For more information: marketing@vetagro.com