Streptococcus suis infection in swine. A sixteen month study.

A total of 349 isolates of Streptococcus suis retrieved from different tissues from diseased pigs were examined in this study. Only 48% of them could be categorized as one of serotypes 1 to 8 and 1/2. Among typable isolates, serotype 2 was the most prevalent (23%), followed by serotype 3 (10%). The majority of all isolates originated from lungs, meninges/brain, and multiple tissues. Forty-one percent of typable isolates and 33% of untypable isolates were retrieved in pure culture. Other isolates were found in conjunction with Pasteurella multocida, Escherichia coli, Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae, Actinomyces pyogenes, and other streptococci. Typable S. suis isolates were more frequently isolated from pigs between five and ten weeks of age, while untypable isolates were mostly found in animals aged more than 24 weeks. No obvious monthly and/or seasonal variation of the prevalence of isolation of S. suis could be detected.