Abstract:

Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae disease and serology

Thomas A. Marsteller, DVM; Brad Fenwick, DVM, MS, PhD

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Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae is a primary bacterialpathogen causing swine respiratory disease and has been describedin most major swine-producing regions of the world. Preliminarydiagnosis of A. pleuropneumoniae is based on clinical signsand gross pneumonic lesions. Isolating and identifying the causativebacteria confirms the diagnosis. Twelve serotypes of A. pleuropneumoniaeand a number of serotype variants have been identified. Serumdiagnostic tests have been developed for some of these serovars.The serological test to be implemented in a herd diagnostic effortshould be determined by the herd veterinarian in consultationwith the laboratory. The herd veterinarian should evaluate theadvantages and disadvantages of each serological test prior todetermining which test to apply in a specific herd situation.Several tests may need to be employed, as in some cases multipleserotypes are present in the same herd. Each laboratory assignsits own sensitivity and specificity to the tests they provide.Diagnostic cutoff points are set for herd evaluations and thus,serological evaluations should only be completed on a herd basisas they are not valid when applied to the individual animal. Itis important to ensure that an adequate sample size of pigs isevaluated to determine the correct serological status of a swinepopulation.

Keywords: Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae, pneumonia, respiratory disease

RIS citationCite as: Marsteller TA, Fenwick B. Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae disease and serology. J Swine Health Prod 1999;7(4):161-165.

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