PUNCTURE OF BOAR’S EPIDIDYMIS FOR DIAGNOSING PORCINE BRUCELLOSIS

Abstract

In Serbia, mostly along the Danube, Morava and Mlava rivers, in animals reared under extensive conditions a disease named “rednja” may be detected. In the settlements where abortion is diagnosed all the sows mate with one boar that is infected with brucellosis. The Veterinary Program designs the control of Brucellosis twice a year, but the boars raised in extensive system are not controled and they are not registered. The causative agent was only recently isolated, confirmed and typed as Brucella suis biotype 2 (7). The owners have not reported the cases of abortion because they had thought that the reason are mechanical injuries that occur during feeding and drinking. After the visit of a vet a suspicion of brucellosis is notified. The symptoms of this disease are nonspecific. Only after abortion and if the swelling of boar scrotum occurs Brucellosis can be suspected. Brucellosis can be diagnosed in pigs by clinical examination, isolation, identification and typing of pathogens, serological and biological examination. Blood sampling is usually done in the case of abortion for serology examination, and also the placenta or aborted foetus is used for determining the cause. In addition to the above mentioned, the most important samples for bacteriological examination are the mandibular, retropharyngeal and supramamary lymph nodes, boar semen, i.e. testis after castration. All these samples cannot be taken when the reports on abortion are untimely. This means, only blood samples for serological examination can be taken. However, the literature does not mention epididymal puncture as a possible sample that is important for bacteriological examination, in addition to blood sampling from live animals. When the boars are fixed for blood sampling, the puncture of the epididymis can also be carried out for isolation of Brucella suis. After the disinfection, a sterile needle is stitched about 1 cm in depth and about 1-2 ml of the content is aspirated. Occassional sanies does not interfere the testing. The material can be frozen and examined when there the conditions are favourable and the laboratory available. Epididymal puncture is recommended as a safe and reliable way of sampling the diseased animals for the isolation and identification of Brucella suis biotype 2. During the bacteriological examination it was found that other bacterial species did not affect the growth of Brucella suis.