[Toxoplasmosis epizootic in a fattening swine herd]

In a fattening pig herd comprising 80 animals 13 were affected with clinical manifest toxoplasmosis presumably due to cat feces in the food. Seven pigs died, one was killed in extremis. The clinical signs were anorexia, apathy, fever, cyanosis, dyspnoea and partly hind limb weakness. One pig that died 3 days after onset of clinical signs had widespread necroses in liver and lymphatic organs. Single tachyzoites were detected by immunoperoxidase technique. One pig dying on day 11 and another euthanatized the same day showed severe desquamative and interstitial pneumonia and marked non suppurative meningoencephalomyelitis as well as necrotic foci mostly infiltrated with mononuclear cells in liver, adrenals and lymphatic organs. In all affected organs toxoplasmas were demonstrated histologically and immunohistologically. Every 2 surviving pigs were killed 40 days and 20 weeks, respectively, after recovery. These animals had high antibody titers against toxoplasma gondii and showed severe non suppurative meningoencephalitis and toxoplasma cysts in the brain without preceding clinical signs. In the lymphatic organs a marked hyperplasia was observed.