The following group of poultry problems can be put together under one heading, the Metabolic Hepatitis (MH), they are Inclusion Body Hepatitis (IBH), Fatty Liver and Kidney Syndrome (FLKS) and Fatty Liver Hemorrhagic Syndrome (FLHS), as their symptoms and lesions are similar, overlapping and difficult to differentiate, they all show enlarged, pale, febrile, liver’s, sometimes with hemorrhage’s and necrotic foci, swollen and enlarged kidneys, fluid in pericardial sac, hemorrhages on skeletal muscles etc.
Metabolic Hepatitis (MH)is caused by a combination of several factor’s, like the presence (detectable and non detectable) of a variety of mycotoxins and their metabolites, cause inflammation and damage the G I Tract leading to leaky Gut, allowing unwanted nutrients, non-nutrients, bacteria, virus’s and fungi etc., to escape into the blood stream, reach the liver and disturb energy metabolism, interfere with the thyroid, its functioning and the growth hormones and the suppression of the immune system, in-adequate bio-security procedures and practices, various stresses (avoidable and un-avoidable), certain medicines, chemicals and drugs and their in-compatibilities, certain management practices and the contamination of environment, feed and water.
As the signs, symptoms and lesions of IBH, FLKS and FLHS are similar and overlapping, with in-adequate laboratory support for the confirmation of the diagnosis, guesswork and individual opinion’s prevail, often followed by mis-diagnosis and wrong treating, and recommending vaccines (required or not) like the IBH, IBD, EDS and CIA or blaming the transmission as Vertical, from the parent stock breeders and the hatchery.
The demand for fast growth, low FCR and economical production, in minimum number of days to market, have pushed the nutritionist and feed manufacturing units to produce high protein high energy feeds to give the desirable results. Use of alternate feed ingredients and oils (fats) to provide energy, have further complicated the situation.
The sequence of events leading to the liver and kidney’s damage through the high protein and high energy feeds is due to the stress created by the presence of multiple mycotoxins and their metabolites, certain anti nutrients, in-compatible drugs, chemicals and medicines, they first damage the G I tract, cause inflammation leading to leaky gut, allowing mycotoxins, their metabolites and anti-nutrients and a variety of damage causing micro-organisms (bacteria, virus’s, fungus and parasites) to pass through and reach the livers, cause damage and interfere with and disturb the metabolic activity, interfere with the thyroid, its functioning and the growth hormones, simultaneously causing immune-suppression, due to the oxidative changes from the rancid oil, causing cellular and tissue damage and interfering with the fatty acid metabolism. The immune suppressed birds fail to mount sufficient immune response to the vaccines used (un-explainable partial vaccine failure), become prone to several bacterial and viral diseases, leading to poor health, poor FCR, increase in morbidity and mortality.
Mitigation Strategies should include, good quality feed ingredients at all the times, plan all programs for minimum possible stress to the birds, use of a combination of toxin binders ( as one binder can never prevent all types of mycotoxins and their metabolites), maintain G I tract integrity, minimize inflammation and damage, testing of the oil being used, for the free fatty acids and oxidative changes, use of anti-oxidants and regular use of probiotics, and immune system boosters, a suitable area related vaccination program and the use of proper and appropriate hygiene and sanitation practices..