Reproductive diseases affecting swine herds can be extremely costly for producers, as they are often found in combination with one another. Porcine parvovirus (PPV) is a significant threat to reproductive health in sow herds, because it can cause reproductive failure characterized by the presence of mummies and stillborn piglets, in addition to infertility and an irregular return to estrus.

But PPV isn’t the only reproductive disease producers grapple with. Both porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) and porcine circovirus Type 2 (PCV2) can also result in reproductive failure, leading to decreased sow reproductive performance, and as a result, decreased profits. In fact, more than 70% of reproductive failures linked to an infectious agent are related to one of these three viruses.^1,2

For these reasons, it’s crucial for producers to have a vaccination protocol that protects against these challenging reproductive diseases to reduce the threat of mass infection and optimize pig performance.

 

Reproductive impacts of PPV

 

PPV is a highly infectious, stable and endemic virus, which helps enable the spread of infection throughout sow herds.

After a pig is infected, PPV replicates throughout the body; within their lymphoid tissues, salivary glands, lungs, bone marrow and intestinal crypts.³ Because PPV replicates in intestinal cells, environmental contamination can occur, which can cause the rapid spread of the virus.⁴ Farrowing rooms tend to have the largest concentrations of PPV in infected environments, because PPV specializes in its ability to infect certain tissue types, specifically the embryonic and fetal tissues.⁵

If herds aren’t vaccinated or don’t have any active immunity to PPV, they are at risk of being infected and becoming more susceptible to co-infections with other reproductive diseases, such as PRRS and PCV2.⁴

 

A new solution for essential control of PRRS and PPV

 

For producers looking to generate a strong immune response and drive protection against the two leading causes of pathogen-related reproductive losses in swine, FLEX ParvoPRRS^® provides a simple solution. FLEX PARVOPRRS is the first single-injection vaccine to combine the efficacy and safety of industry-leading ReproCyc ParvoFLEX^® for PPV and Ingelvac PRRS^® MLV for PRRS. This combination is possible, thanks to DiaTEC, a patented diafiltration process that results in a highly immunogenic and non-virucidal vaccine.

In a recent study comparing gilts challenged with PPV and vaccinated with either FLEX PARVOPRRS or INGELVAC PRRS MLV on its own, only 20% of fetuses from the INGELVAC PRRS MLV group were in normal condition compared to 98% of fetuses from the FLEX PARVOPRRS group.⁶ This demonstrates that vaccination with FLEX PARVOPRRS can help maximize healthy litters in the face of a PPV challenge.⁶ And because the vaccine has been shown to be safe for every stage of gestation and lactation, it supports mass-vaccination protocols.

“Combining PPV and PRRS vaccines into a single injection is a cost-effective way to protect herds against the devastating impacts of reproductive disease and also reduce stress on each pig,” said Greg Cline, DVM, senior key account veterinarian, Boehringer Ingelheim. “It also gives produces greater flexibility in terms of vaccination timing, allowing it to fit into many different protocols.”

To learn more about FLEX PARVOPRRS, contact your Boehringer Ingelheim representative.

 

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References

¹ Salogni C, Lazarro M, Giacomini E, et al. Infectious agents identified in aborted swine fetuses in a high-density breeding area: a three-year study. J Vet Diagn Invest. 28(5):550–554.

² Mengeling WL, Lager KM, Vorwarld AC, et al. The effect of Porcine parvovirus and porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus on porcine reproductive performance. Anim Reprod Sci 2000;60–61:199–210.

³ Duhamel GE, Bargar TW, Schmitt BJ, et al. Identification of parvovirus-like virus particles in intestinal crypt epithelial cells of pigs with diarrhea. J Vet Diagn Invest 1991;3:96–98.

⁴ Carter J Saunders V. Parvoviruses (and other ssDNA viruses). Virology: Principles and applications. 2nd. ed. West Sussex, UK: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2013;135–144.

⁵ Truyen U and Streck AF. Porcine parvovirus. In: Zimmerman, JJ, Karriker LA, Ramirez A, et al, eds. Diseases of swine. 10th. ed. West Sussex, UK: Wiley-Blackwell, 2012;447–455.

⁶ Efficacy of three commercial porcine parvovirus vaccines in pregnant gilts. Study No. 18.0263.P. Submitted for publication.

 

FLEX PARVOPRRS^®, INGLEVAC PRRS^® MLV and REPROCYC PARVOFLEX^® are registered trademarks of Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica GmbH, used under license. ©2022 Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health USA Inc., Duluth, GA. All Rights Reserved. US-POR-0134-2022