The objective of the present study was to evaluate the efficacy of various diagnostic methods and to estimate the prevalence of bacterial pathogens associated with subclinical endometritis (SCE) in dromedary camels. During two consecutive breeding seasons, a total of 2122 infertile female dromedaries were assigned to this study and suspected cases of SCE were identified using the established criteria which included failure to conceive after three or more consecutive matings with a fertile male, a clinically healthy genital system, no observable vaginal discharge, and normal sexual behavior. Manual vaginal examination, Metricheck, bacteriological examination using endometrial swabbing, and hemogram assessments were conducted and there were comparisons of results to when there was cytological examination using the Cytobrush technique as the gold standard. The threshold value for positive cases of SCE was set at ≥ 5% polymorphnuclear cells in the cytological samples. Subclinical endometritis was diagnosed in 211 9.94 %) of the total infertility cases. Endometrial swabbing was a more sensitive and specific technique for diagnoses compared with the other methods. Bacillus sp., Staphylococcus sp., and Candida albicans were the most commonly isolated microorganisms. Hemogram testing and rectal and ultrasonographic examinations were not effective for the diagnosis of SCE. It was concluded that, compared with other diagnostic tests, bacteriological examination is more sensitive and specific for the detection of SCE in dromedaries.
Keywords: Cytobrush; Cytology; Female dromedary; Metricheck; Subclinical endometritis.
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