A new periparturient disease in Eastern Europe, Clostridium difficile causes postparturient sow losses
Introduction
Clostridium difficile is a gram-positive to gram-variable, spore-forming anaerobe that is commonly found in the intestinal tract of various mammals, birds, and reptiles [1]. It produces a toxin, which can be detected by enzyme-linked immunoassay (ELISA) [2], [3], [4], [5], [6].
C. difficile is considered to be a cause of antibiotic associated diarrhea and pseudomembranous colitis in humans, enterocolitis in foals, nosocomial diarrhea and typhlocolitis in adult horses, and typhlitis in hamsters [5]. C. difficile is usually classified as an opportunist bacterium that colonizes young animals and human infants [1], but it is rapidly displaced as the flora matures [7]. In swine herds, C. difficile has been reported to be a cause of diarrhea [1], [2], [3], [4], [5], [6], [7], [11], [12], respiratory distress [2] and high morbidity and mortality [2], [3] of neonatal and weaned piglets. Typical gross pathological lesions include inflammatory enteric changes, mesocolonic edema, hydrothorax, ascites, scattered foci of suppuration, and accumulation of neutrophils and fibrin in the colonic lamina propria [1], [2], [3], [4], [5], [6], [7], [11], [12]. C. difficile-related health problems may be enhanced by stress, lack of hygiene, dietary changes, and the use of certain types of antimicrobials [1], [2], [3], [4], [5], [6], [7], [12].
C. difficile-related postparturient sow losses have not been reported in the literature. The purpose of this communication is to report a case in which C. difficile might have been the cause of sow mortality.
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Materials and methods
The case described here occurred in a large Croatian outdoor swine operation of 2949 sows between January and March 2003. The breeding females were F1 offspring of Large White × Landrace sows and were mated to Duroc boars.
The sows were uniformly vaccinated in every unit against parvovirosis, erysipelas, leptospirosis, Clostridium perfringens C, Escherichia coli and pseudorabies. Feeding management [4]:
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during gestation restricted, 24–28 megajoule (MJ) digestible energy (DE)/d depending of age and
Results
On gross examinations, sections of small intestine revealed congestion of the submucosa and mucosa. Content of the large intestine was yellow to dark yellow. Scattered suppurative areas were found in the colonic lamina propria. The spiral colon was highly edematous.
On microscopic examination, the small intestine revealed congestion of the submucosa and mucosa, scattered suppurative foci in the colonic lamina propria. Neutrophilic infiltrates were found in the mesocolon. The colonic mucosa
Discussion
Annualized postparturient mortality due to MMA was 6.2% (13% treated, 0.4% non-treated sows) from January to March 2003. In contrast to the case period, the annualized postparturient mortality due to MMA was 2.4% before January and 2.6% after March. The treated sows affected with MMA had similar parity distribution (3.21 ± 0.46) as the other sows of the herd (3.23 ± 0.31), but the sows that died due to C. difficile infection and during the enrofloxacine treatment were younger (1.57 ± 0.11).
During the
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