title: Effect of fenbendazole in water on pigs infected with Ascaris suum in finishing pigs under field conditions.
abstract: The husbandry of pigs for meat production is a constantly developing industry. Most studies on the effects of Ascaris suum infection in pigs and its prevention with anthelmintics are over a decade old. We examined the effect of 2.5mg fenbendazole per kg bodyweight administered in drinking water for two consecutive days on A. suum infection 1 and 6 weeks after pigs arrived to fattening units. We hypothesised that the treatment would reduce the presence of A. suum-infections, improve the average daily weight gain of pigs, reduce the percentage of liver rejections in pens by 50% and increase the lean meat percentage at slaughter by 1%. The study included a placebo group (427 pigs) and a treatment group (420 pigs) spanning four different farms previously reporting ≥15% liver rejection. The treatment was given for 2 consecutive days 1 and 6 weeks after the pigs arrived to the fattening unit. Faecal samples were collected during weeks 1, 6 and 12 from all pigs and examined for A. suum eggs. Blood was collected during weeks 1 and 12 from a subgroup of the pigs and examined for anti-A. suum antibodies and clinical blood parameters. Data on liver rejection and lean meat percentage were collected post-mortem. The proportion of Ascaris seropositive pigs changed from 8.6% to 22.2% and 20.3% to 16.3% in the placebo and treatment group respectively. Fenbendazole reduced the presence of A. suum eggs in faeces the percentage of liver rejections by 69.8%. The treatment did not affect daily weight gain or lean meat percentage. Pigs with A. suum eggs in faeces at week 6 had a lower average daily weight gain of 61.8g/day compared with pigs without parasite eggs. Fenbendazole treatment may be a useful option for farms struggling with persistent A. suum problems and demonstrate a beneficial effect on the weight gain of the animals shedding eggs in faeces and result in fewer condemned livers at slaughter.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, Estonian University of Life Sciences, Kreutzwaldi 62, Tartu, Estonia; Department of Veterinary Disease Biology, University of Copenhagen, Groennegaardsvej 15, Denmark. Electronic address: brian.lassen@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Brian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Lassen
authors.affiliation: Department of Production Animal Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Helsinki, Paroninkuja 20, 04920, Saarentaus, Finland.
authors.forename: Claudio
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Oliviero
authors.affiliation: Institute of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, Estonian University of Life Sciences, Kreutzwaldi 62, Tartu, Estonia.
authors.forename: Toomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Orro
authors.affiliation: HKScan Oyj, P.O. Box 49, 01511 Vantaa, Finland.
authors.forename: Elias
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Jukola
authors.affiliation: Department of Production Animal Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Helsinki, Paroninkuja 20, 04920, Saarentaus, Finland.
authors.forename: Tapio
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Laurila
authors.affiliation: Department of Production Animal Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Helsinki, Paroninkuja 20, 04920, Saarentaus, Finland.
authors.forename: Minna
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Haimi-Hakala
authors.affiliation: Department of Production Animal Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Helsinki, Paroninkuja 20, 04920, Saarentaus, Finland.
authors.forename: Mari
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Heinonen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000871:Anthelmintics / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D001196:Ascariasis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*; D017165:Ascaris suum / Q000187:drug effects*; D005243:Feces / Q000469:parasitology; D005260:Female; D005273:Fenbendazole / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D008099:Liver / Q000469:parasitology; D010063:Ovum; D010270:Parasite Egg Count / Q000662:veterinary; D000069466:Red Meat / Q000592:standards; D013552:Swine; D013553:Swine Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000469:parasitology; D014867:Water; D015430:Weight Gain / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D000871:Anthelmintics; D014867:Water; D005273:Fenbendazole
keywords: Anthelmintic; Ascaris suum; Fenbendazole; Liver rejection; Milk spots; Swine