Postpartum ultrasound assessment in sheep: Literature Review

Puerperium is the period after the completion of delivery and occurs on a decreasing logarithmic scale, especially during the first week after delivery, when uterus undergoes marked remodeling. However, hormonal, cellular, and molecular mechanisms that regulate this process are not fully understood. Considering the need to establish early diagnostic methods to evaluate changes during sheep’s puerperium and the scarce number of studies on uterine involution, monitoring this period is essential to avoid declining in reproductive efficiency, as calving interval is directly related to the speed of uterine involution and the return to female reproductive activity. Therefore, understanding the postpartum reproductive tract recovery process of this species is of great importance for the success of sheep production systems. We review the puerperal period, the mechanisms underlying the normal reproduction of sheep and ultrasonography to evaluate this period as an experimental model or for application in Veterinary Medicine.

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