Survey of porcine proliferative enteritis in the Tohoku district of Japan

Abstract

A survey of proliferative enteritis (PE) in pigs at a meat processing plant was conducted using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing methods. During the investigation period, 227 of 83,717 pigs brought to the meat processing plant from Iwate, Fukushima , Miyagi, Niigata, and Yamagata Prefectures displayed characteristic general pathological features in terminal ileum, including mucosal hypertrophy and reticulation of serosal surface. Of these, 179 cases were further examined in the laboratory. All cases displayed characteristic histopathological features, and the specific band of the Lawsonia intracellularis (Li) causative agent of PE in pigs was detected in 155 cases by PCR testing methods. These results suggested a general infiltration of Li in the Tohoku district.