Gastrointestinal parasites in Swedish pigs: Prevalence and associated risk factors for infection in herds where animal welfare standards are improved

Pettersson, Emelie; Sjölund, Marie; Dórea, Fernanda C.; Lind, Eva Osterman; Grandi, Giulio; Jacobson, Magdalena; Höglund, Johan; Wallgren, Per

doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2021.109459

Cited by 8 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…Respiratory parasites or parasites that include the respiratory system in their lifecycle, such as A. suum and Metastrongylus spp., may also have an impact on the PRDC. As lungworms are rarely detected and rarely discussed in the pig production today [ 6 ], a recent finding of lungworms in an outdoor pig herd, that also suffered a severe outbreak of respiratory disease, initiated this extended disease investigation. What was the true impact of the lungworms?…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The high number of A. suum eggs detected in samples from animals housed on concrete slabs was explained by the fact that pigs, if not already infected with A. suum on arrival, became infected by residual A. suum eggs. Residual eggs could be reduced by improving hygienic measures between batches [ 6 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The reason for this is that pigs are mainly reared indoors where there is no access to the intermediate host [ 5 ], and eggs of Metastrongylus spp. were not demonstrated in any faecal sample in a recently published Swedish parasite-point-prevalence study [ 6 ]. Thus, lungworms are rarely diagnosed in domestic pigs reared indoors, and therefore also rarely discussed in pigs reared outdoors.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Lungworms (Metastrongylus spp.) demonstrated in domestic pigs with respiratory disease: was there a clinical relevance?

Wallgren

Pettersson

2022

Porc Health Manag

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Background An outdoor pig herd was affected by severe respiratory disease in one out of three pastures. At necropsy, Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae and Pasteurella multocida were detected in the lungs, as well as the lung worm Metastrongylus apri. The life cycle of Metastrongylus spp. includes earthworms as intermediate hosts, and since domestic pigs mainly are reared indoors, lungworm infections have not been diagnosed in domestic pigs in Sweden for decades, not even in pigs reared outdoors. Therefore, this disease outbreak was scrutinised from the view of validating the impact of Metastrongylus spp. Results At the time of the disease outbreak, neither eggs of Metastrongylus spp., Trichuris suis nor Ascaris suum were detected in faeces of pigs aged ten weeks. In contrast, five-months-old pigs at the pasture with respiratory disease shed up to 3800 eggs per gram (Epg) of Ascaris suum and up to 1100 Epg of Trichuris suis, whereas eggs of these parasites were not demonstrated in healthy pigs aged six months at another pasture. Low numbers of eggs from Metastrongylus spp. (< 150 Epg) were seen in faecal samples from both these age categories. At slaughter, seven weeks later, ten normal weighted pigs in the preceding healthy batch were compared with ten normal weighted and five small pigs from the affected batch. Healing Mycoplasma-like pneumonic lesions were seen in all groups. All small pigs shed eggs of Ascaris suum in the faeces, compared to around 50% of the larger pigs. Metastrongylus spp. were demonstrated in 13 of the 25 pigs (52%), representing all groups included. Conclusion As Metastrongylus spp. were demonstrated regardless of health status, and also in another healthy outdoor herd, the impact of Metastrongylus spp. on the outbreak of respiratory disease was depreciated. Instead, a possible association with a high burden of Ascaris suum was suggested to have preceded the severe outbreak with respiratory disease in the affected herd. Further, it was concluded that Metastrongylus spp. will escape detection at routine meat inspections made at slaughterhouses, and as they appeared to generally not induce clinical signs of respiratory disease Metastrongylus spp. may be more common in outdoor production than previously believed.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Lungworms (Metastrongylus spp.) demonstrated in domestic pigs with respiratory disease: was there a clinical relevance?

Wallgren

Pettersson

2022

Porc Health Manag

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“…Fenbendazole can effectively protect sows from infections of most swine parasite species, with 100% protection against A. suum , and 94% to 100% protection against T. suis ( 27 , 28 ). Additionally, washing and drying the farrowing barn could have removed and reduced the survival of parasite eggs, prevented parasite transmission from previous farrowing groups ( 24 ), and ultimately reduced parasite pressure in the sow herds in this study. Furthermore, sows housed in the bedded barns possibly could have developed immunity against intestinal parasites, especially A. suum and T. suis .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…spp. remains at a very low level until pigs reach the breeding phase ( 5 , 24 ). In the current study, we observed distinct patterns of intestinal parasite infections in pigs at different production stages.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Occurrence of Intestinal Parasites and Its Impact on Growth Performance and Carcass Traits of Pigs Raised Under Near-Organic Conditions

Hernandez

Major

et al. 2022

Front. Vet. Sci.

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Parasite infection is a common problem in organic pig production, which can compromise health and growth of pigs, threaten food safety of pork products, and cause economic losses to organic farmers. To develop management strategies for controlling parasites, we evaluated intestinal parasite infection in pigs at different ages and of different sexes, and investigated whether parasite infection influences growth performance and carcass traits in a cross-sectional study. Fecal samples were collected from pigs (n = 298) raised under near-organic standards during nursery, growing, finishing, and gestating phases for analysis of fecal egg counts (FEC) of Ascaris suum, Trichuris suis, and Oesophagostomum spp. Ascaris suum eggs were not detected in the feces of nursery pigs. Eggs of Ascaris suum were found in 45%, 74%, and 0% of fecal samples of growing pigs, finishing pigs, and gestating sows, respectively, after false-positive adjustment (P < 0.001). Mean FEC of Ascaris suum was higher in infected finishing pigs than in infected growing pigs [2,502 vs. 724 eggs per gram (epg), P < 0.001]. No differences in percent of Ascaris suum positive samples or FEC of Ascaris suum were detected between sexes. Growth performance and carcass traits were not different between non-infected pigs and those infected with Ascaris suum. All pigs (n = 32) examined at slaughter had white spots on the liver, and 78% harbored Ascaris suum worms. Trichuris suis eggs were not detected in any fecal samples. Eggs of Oesophagostomum spp. were found in 7%, 0%, 1%, and 9% of fecal samples of nursery pigs, growing pigs, finishing pigs, and gestating sows, respectively, with a maximum FEC of 40 epg in all age groups. These results indicate Ascaris suum was the predominant parasite infecting growing and finishing pigs in the herds studied. To control A. suum infection, future research should investigate the efficacy of treating pigs with organically approved anthelmintics during the growing phase of production.

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Epidemiology and distribution of gastrointestinal parasites in fattening pig farms in northern Italy

Allievi,

Valleri,

Zanzani

et al. 2024

Parasitol Res

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In Italy, pig breeding is characterised by intensive farms in which parasitic diseases often present a subclinical pattern, while being responsible for decreased animal welfare and great economic losses. The present study aimed to assess the prevalence of major parasites in pigs, and, for this purpose, 880 faecal samples of fattening pigs raised in 22 intensive farms located in northern Italy were collected in two different sampling sessions, at the beginning and end of the fattening cycle. For the detection of helminth eggs and coccidian oocysts, a quantitative flotation technique was used, whereas a conventional PCR was performed to confirm the identification of cestode eggs found by copromicroscopic analysis. Moreover, data regarding herd management were collected to assess risk factors for parasite occurrence. A total of 95 samples were positive for at least one parasitic taxon (10.8%); the most detected parasite was Ascaris suum (7.6%), followed by Trichuris suis (1.7%) and Cystoisospora suis (0.9%). Further, eggs with morphometric features compatible with those of Hymenolepis diminuta were detected in 16 samples (1.8%), and the analysis of sequences confirmed the identification of cestode eggs. Statistical analysis showed that large farms and those applying the all-in/all-out system were associated with a lower risk of nematode infection. This study provided data on prevalence and burden of gastrointestinal parasites in two different times of the fattening cycle. It was evidenced that endoparasites are persistent, albeit with low prevalences, and would need specific measures to reduce their effects on both animal health and productivity.

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Gastrointestinal parasites in Swedish pigs: Prevalence and associated risk factors for infection in herds where animal welfare standards are improved

Cited by 8 publications

References 35 publications

Lungworms (Metastrongylus spp.) demonstrated in domestic pigs with respiratory disease: was there a clinical relevance?

Lungworms (Metastrongylus spp.) demonstrated in domestic pigs with respiratory disease: was there a clinical relevance?

Occurrence of Intestinal Parasites and Its Impact on Growth Performance and Carcass Traits of Pigs Raised Under Near-Organic Conditions

Epidemiology and distribution of gastrointestinal parasites in fattening pig farms in northern Italy

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