Hemagglutinating encephalomyelitis virus infection in Korean suckling pigs

From January to June 2006, 54 suckling pigs had been submitted in virology lab., College of Veterinary Medicine, Seoul National University. All pigs had suffered from various symptoms such as respiratory sign, enteric signs, neurologic signs, etc. Among 54 pigs, 24 pigs (44.4%) were positive for porcine hemagglutinating encephalomyelitis virus (HEV) through reverse transcription-nested polymerase chain reaction. According to this result, HEV infections seemed to be prevalent and widespread in Korean swine farms, and the infection is associated with respiratory signs and neurologic signs more than enteric signs. The HEV positive pigs showing respiratory signs were co-infected with viruses such as PRRSV, and PCV2, or bacteria such as Pasteurella spp. The single infection may subclinically have an influence on outbreak of other respiratory pathogens in suckling pigs.