Post Weaning Multisystemic Wasting Syndrome: an Emerging Disease of Swine- an Overview

Post weaning multisystemic wasting syndrome is a worldwide disease of multifactorial origin and Porcine circovirus 2 (PCV2) has been identified as its essential infectious etiology. It mainly affects the nursery and growing piglets. Clinically, the symptoms include wasting, unthriftness and paleness of the skin, respiratory distress, diarrhea and icterus. Microscopic lesions in lymphoid tissues mainly lymphocyte depletion with histiocytic infiltration are quite specific for PMWS. These clinical and laboratory findings mainly changes in the cytokine expression due to atrophy or depletion of organs along with lesions suggest that severely affected pigs become immunosuppressed. A vaccine against PCV2 is being used in some European countries but in India is not available.