SHIC Offers New Tool to Allow Producers to Monitor Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome

Aug 20, 2024

The Associate Director of the Swine Health Information Center says a new tool added to SHIC's monthly domestic swine disease monitoring report will help pork producers and veterinarians identify where and what strains of PRRS are being reported across the U.S.Starting with its monthly swine disease monitoring report for August, the Swine Health Information Center has introduced a new Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome virus ORF5 sequence page.Swine Health Information Center Associate Director Dr. Lisa Becton says producers can use the information to assess the risk of PRRS to their systems.

Quote-Dr. Lisa Becton-Swine Health Information Center:

This is a really great addition to the SDRS reporting and their supporting charts that are added.One of those is looking at the total number of sequences submitted.It also tracks the viruses looking at the similarity between different viruses that are submitted and also looking at what are the most frequent variants detected by state.

This is really important information because it offers up a very distinct and consolidated method to be able to track new isolates, the frequency of this detection as well as the location by state.This something that producers can look at, veterinarians can look at and utilize this information when they assess their risk to their farms or systems and it may also aid in decision making as far as looking at risk of downstream flows.

Are certain states more active than others?What strains are present and does that guide any other intervention strategies such as vaccination?This overall really is a nice addition to the system to help monitor and track PRRS strains going on in the U.S.

Dr. Becton says the page provides a consolidated location to focus on how much virus is out there, what type of virus is being seen and also be able to visualize location by state on a national basis and so it offers a good broad perspective of PRRS status within the United States.SHIC's domestic and global swine reports are available at swinehealth.org and through SHIC's monthly eNewsletter.

Source : Farmscape.ca

Video: Managing Severe PRRS Outbreaks - Dr. Claire Mtezankuni

In this episode of The Swine it Podcast Show Canada, Dr. Claire Mtezankuni, Swine Veterinarian at Carthage Veterinary Service, discusses the growing severity of PRRS outbreaks in sow farms. She explains how respiratory disease and sow mortality are changing outbreak response, why necropsies and bacterial cultures can guide treatment, and how vaccination, biosecurity, pain management, and clear team communication support recovery and elimination. Listen now on all major platforms!

“Emerging PRRS strains can produce severe reproductive and respiratory disease simultaneously, creating substantial health challenges across sow farms during acute outbreaks.”

Meet the guest: Dr. Claire Mtezankuni / claire-mtezankuni-2529b1b3 is a Swine Veterinarian at Carthage Veterinary Service in Illinois, where her work includes commercial farm veterinary leadership, herd health, disease elimination, and veterinary internship coordination. She holds a DVM from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and a Master of Veterinary Science in Livestock Systems Health from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Learn more from Dr. Claire Mtezankuni on The Swine it Podcast Show Canada, available on all major platforms.