Abstract
Herd health slaughter checks regularly identify enzootic pneumonia-like (EP-like) lesions and pleuritis. The aim of this paper is to determine the associations between these lesions and post-trimming carcass weight. Data were collected on the presence/ absence and severity of EP-like lesions and presence/ absence of pleuritis from pigs at the abattoir. Linear mixed models identified a significant association between an increase in EP-like lesion severity and a decrease in post-trimming carcass weight (P=0.006) at the individual level. Each categorical increase in EP-like lesion severity (5 points step) was associated with a 0.37kg reduction in post-trimming carcass weight. The presence of EP-like lesions in individual pigs, irrespective of severity (P=0.034) and the presence of pleuritis (P=0.038) were significantly associated with a reduction in post-trimming carcass weight of 1.26kg and 1.25kg respectively. The results confirm that the presence of these lesions at slaughter are associated with a significant decrease in production performance which can result in substantial economic implications for producers.
Highlights
Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae is the primary etiologic agent of enzootic pneumonia (EP) of pigs and is a key pathogen in porcine respiratory disease complex (PRDC) (Thacker and Minion, 2012)
Recent analysis of the BPEX Pig Health Scheme (BPHS) data showed that EP-like lesions and pleuritis are the most commonly recorded lung lesions affecting pigs at slaughter in the UK (Eze et al, 2015)
EP-like lesions were commonly identified in this study with 80% of batches affected, which is consistent with a recent report by (Gomes, 2015) where 80-90% of batches assessed as part of the BPHS had at least one animal affected
Summary
Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae is the primary etiologic agent of enzootic pneumonia (EP) of pigs and is a key pathogen in porcine respiratory disease complex (PRDC) (Thacker and Minion, 2012). One of the main pathogens associated with the development of pleuritis is Actinobacillus pleuropneumonia (APP) (Merialdi et al, 2012). Pleuritis can include both fibrous and fibrinous adhesions which can be either visceral (lobe to lobe) or parietal (lung to thoracic wall) (Jäger et al, 2012). In England, the BPEX Pig Health Scheme (BPHS) was initiated in 2005 This voluntary scheme enables enrolled producers to have their pigs assessed at slaughter. Recent analysis of the BPHS data showed that EP-like lesions and pleuritis are the most commonly recorded lung lesions affecting pigs at slaughter in the UK (Eze et al, 2015)
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