An Assessment of the Accuracy of Digital and Optical Brix Refractometers for Estimating Passive Immunity in Beef Calves

Authors : Mehmet Akköse, Ceyhan Özbeyaz

Pages : 92-100

Doi:10.46897/livestockstudies.1222935

View : 14 | Download : 7

Publication Date : 2022-12-29

Article Type : Research Article

Abstract :This study was aimed at determining and comparing the diagnostic accuracy of digital and optical Brix refractometers (D-Brix and O-Brix, respectively) for the estimation of passive immunity status ( 0.90). For predicting serum IgG concentrations of <16 and <24 g/L, the optimal cut-off values were <8.3% and <9.4% for the O-Brix refractometer, and 8.4% and 9.6% for the D-Brix refractometer, respectively. At the optimal thresholds for estimating serum IgG concentrations of <16 g/L, the sensitivity and specificity were 91.89% and 97.62% for the D-Brix refractometer, and 91.89% and 96.83% for the O-Brix refractometer, respectively. At the optimal thresholds for estimating serum IgG concentrations of <24 g/L, the sensitivity and specificity were 88.14% and 80.77% for the D-Brix refractometer, and 86.44% and 80.77% for the O-Brix refractometer, respectively. Cohen’s kappa coefficients suggested an almost perfect agreement between the results of the two refractometers for the estimation of IgG of <16 (κ=0.90) and <24 g/L (κ=0.86). In conclusion, digital and optical Brix refractometers could be safely used as monitoring tools for assessing passive immunity status in neonatal beef calves.
Keywords : Beef calf, Brix, Optic, Digital, Passive immunity