Milk Composition and Somatic Cell Count in Cows with Subclinical Mastitis Receiving Helianthus tuberosus-Based Phytogranules: An Exploratory Field Study

Subclinical mastitis is associated with increased milk somatic cell count (SCC), altered milk composition, and substantial economic losses in dairy herds.This exploratory field study evaluated 30-day changes in milk composition and udder-health indicators in cows with subclinical mastitis supplemented with Helianthus tuberosus-based phytogranules.A total of 127 lactating Simmental cows from a single farm were screened.Of these, 28 cows classified as having subclinical mastitis received phytogranules at 220-250 g/head/day, while 28 clinically normal, culturenegative cows from the same herd were maintained as a non-supplemented physiological reference group.The study was non-randomized and did not include a placebo-treated mastitis control group; therefore, it was designed to describe preliminary field associations rather than establish treatment efficacy.Baseline bacteriological examination was performed at the quarter level and identified mastitis-associated microorganisms in 100 of 508 quarter milk samples (19.7%).Milk composition and SCC measurements were summarized at the cow level.After 30 days, descriptive changes in the subclinical mastitis group included increased milk fat, lactose, skimmed milk dry residue, calcium, and phosphorus, together with a reduction in SCC among cows with available day-30 SCC data.Exploratory repeatedmeasures analyses indicated group-by-time interactions for milk fat, lactose, skimmed milk dry residue, calcium, phosphorus, and log₁₀-transformed SCC.Because post-supplementation bacteriological assessments and inflammatory biomarkers were not obtained, these findings should be interpreted as preliminary.Confirmation in randomized, placebo-controlled trials is required before conclusions regarding efficacy can be established.