Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae – What are we dealing with?

Porcine Pleuropneumonia is a highly contagious respiratory disease with a strong economic impact for the pig sector worldwide caused by the bacterium Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae (APP) (previously Haemophilus pleuropneumoniae).

There are currently 18 serotypes of A. pleuropneumoniae and three varieties of the infection/disease:

• Clinically acute
• Chronic
• Subclinical

In the case of the subclinical form, pigs may be infected without showing clinical signs or lesions in the lungs, and two possibilities may be observed in these cases:

Animals infected by low-virulence strains that do not cause problems. In fact, more than 70% of the farms are infected by one or more of the non-virulent serotypes, which is not considered a major problem.

Animals infected by strains of virulent serotypes that can potentially cause clinical signs at any time (entry of other infections, changes in management, etc.).