Swine vesicular disease (SVD) is an acute, contagious

viral disease A viral disease (or viral infection) occurs when an organism's body is invaded by pathogenic viruses, and infectious virus particles (virions) attach to and enter susceptible cells. Structural Characteristics Basic structural characteristics, s ...

of swine caused by swine vesicular disease virus, an ''

Enterovirus ''Enterovirus'' is a genus of positive-sense single-stranded RNA virus An RNA virus is a virusother than a retrovirusthat has ribonucleic acid (RNA) as its genetic material. The nucleic acid is usually single-stranded RNA ( ssRNA) but it ma ...

''. It is characterized by

fever Fever, also referred to as pyrexia, is defined as having a body temperature, temperature above the human body temperature, normal range due to an increase in the body's temperature Human body temperature#Fever, set point. There is not a single ...

and

vesicles Vesicle may refer to: ; In cellular biology or chemistry * Vesicle (biology and chemistry), a supramolecular assembly of lipid molecules, like a cell membrane * Synaptic vesicle ; In human embryology * Vesicle (embryology), bulge-like features o ...

with subsequent ulcers in the

mouth In animal anatomy, the mouth, also known as the oral cavity, or in Latin cavum oris, is the opening through which many animals take in food and issue vocal sounds. It is also the cavity lying at the upper end of the alimentary canal, bounded on ...

and on the

snout A snout is the protruding portion of an animal's face, consisting of its nose, mouth, and jaw. In many animals, the structure is called a muzzle, rostrum, or proboscis. The wet furless surface around the nostrils of the nose of many mammals is c ...

, feet, and

teat A teat is the projection from the mammary glands of mammals from which milk flows or is ejected for the purpose of feeding young. In many mammals the teat projects from the udder. The number of teats varies by mammalian species and often corre ...

s. The pathogen is relatively resistant to heat, and can persist for a long time in salted, dried, and smoked meat products. Swine vesicular disease does not cause economically important disease, but is important due to its similarity to foot-and-mouth disease.

Transmission

Swine vesicular disease is most commonly brought into a herd by the introduction of a subclinically infected pig. The disease can be transmitted in feed containing infected meat scraps, or by direct contact with infected feces (such as in an improperly cleaned truck).

Clinical signs

After an incubation period up to 7 days, the signs associated with swine vesicular disease occur. The first sign is a transient mild fever. Other signs include: *

Vesicle Vesicle may refer to: ; In cellular biology or chemistry * Vesicle (biology and chemistry), a supramolecular assembly of lipid molecules, like a cell membrane * Synaptic vesicle ; In human embryology * Vesicle (embryology), bulge-like features o ...

s in the mouth and on the snout and feet * Lameness and an unsteady gait, shivering, and jerking–type leg movements * Ruptured vesicles can cause ulcers on limbs and feet, and foot pads may be loosened. Young animals are more severely affected. Recovery often occurs within a week. Mortality is negligible. Swine vesicular disease has the same clinical signs as

foot-and-mouth disease Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) or hoof-and-mouth disease (HMD) is an infectious and sometimes fatal viral disease that affects cloven-hoofed animals, including domestic and wild bovids. The virus causes a high fever lasting two to six days, followe ...

, and can only be diagnosed by laboratory testing.

Prevention and control

No vaccine exists for SVD. Prevention measures are similar to those for foot-and-mouth disease: controlling animals imported from infected areas, sanitary disposal of garbage from international aircraft and ships, and thorough cooking of garbage. Infected animals should be placed in strict quarantine. Eradication measures for the disease include quarantining infected areas, depopulation and disposal of infected and contact pigs, and cleaning and disinfecting contaminated premises.

History

Swine vesicular disease was first identified in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

in 1966. In 1971, an outbreak occurred in

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

, and the disease was subsequently found other countries in Europe and Asia.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Swine Vesicular Disease Animal viral diseases Swine diseases Infraspecific virus taxa Enterovirus-associated diseases