Herd Health

Will a new mutated virus come along and, if so, will present vaccines work against it? Can we stop using the vaccine or do we have to go on forever? These are just some of the questions now surfacing in the wake of the recent epidemic

by ERNEST SANFORD

Now that circovirus vaccines have been such a resounding success, where do we go with circovirus (PCV2) from now on? What else does it have in store for us?

The discovery of methicillin-resistant Staphylocccus aureus (MRSA) in Ontario pigs and pig workers is raising alarm bells in the medical and public health communities that pig-associated MRSAs might extend out into the general population.

by S ERNEST SANFORD

Recently, a mini-media frenzy erupted over a publication by researchers at the Ontario Veterinary College (OVC), University of Guelph, who had reported the presence of methicillin-resistant Staphylocccus aureus (MRSA) in a high percentage of pigs and pig farmers in a survey of Ontario swine herds.

Two papers presented at last summer’s Krakow Emerging Diseases Symposium presented seemingly contradictory results. But caution is needed in interpreting their findings

A summary of some findings from the numerous studies presented 5th International Symposium on Emerging and Re-emerging Pig Diseases

by S. ERNEST SANFORD

The 5th International Symposium on Emerging and Re-emerging Pig Diseases was held in the beautiful and historic city of Krakow, Poland last June 24-27. This symposium has grown significantly in stature and number of attendees since the first one held in St. Paul, Minn., in 1991.

The first three symposia were devoted exclusively to PRRS and Aujezsky’s (pseudorabies) diseases. The name of the symposium was changed to its current form in 2003 when PCV2/ PMWS was added and Aujezsky’s Disease (AD) was removed, as more and more of the major pig-producing countries successfully eradicated the disease. It should be noted that Canada is one country that has never had AD.

With over 1,200 attendees, this was easily the largest of the five symposia and had nearly twice as many as at the previous highest attendance in Rome in 2003. This symposium focused on PCV2, PRRS and Swine Influenza Virus. PCV2 took centre stage, however, surpassing PRRS in both the number of submitted papers (Table 1) and in capturing the attention of the delegates.

This article is devoted to brief reviews of selected papers on porcine circovirus disease presented at Krakow.