The main limitation in the use of rock phosphate in swine diets is the fluorine content that may be toxic when used for long periods. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of monocalcium phosphate (MP) and Tapira phosphate (TP) to sows and their offspring when fed during four reproductive cycles, as compared to the traditional use of dicalcium phosphate (DP). The study involved 13, 16 and 13 sows for DP, MP and TP phosphates, respectively. The litters were also fed with the same respective phosphate treatments until they reached 95 kg of body weight. The variables analyzed were: macroscopic tooth lesions score in sows, histological evaluation of bone tissue, the thyroid and parathyroid glands, and the evaluation of bone mineral contents and bone morphometrical characteristics. The results showed that TP is toxic for sows when used continuously during 4 reproductive cycles and causes lesions of chronic fluorosis in the teeth and bone tissue. TP also affected the litters with some minor lesions of fluorosis in bone tissue at the 4th reproductive cycle. MP induced some minor inespecific lesions only in bone tissue of the sows. No deleterious effects were observed in sows and litters fed DP.
Swine; rock phosphate; Tapira phosphate; fluorosis; bones
