Libourne, 5 May 2014 :

With 90% of swine farms worldwide affected by respiratory disease and an urgent
need to preserve the future of antibiotics by reducing their widespread prophylactic use, the adoption of
targeted, preventative health programmes has become critical.

Ceva Santé Animale decided some years ago that to repeat its success in producing innovative avian
vaccines in the swine sector, it would have to focus and as a result chose to concentrate first on respiratory
health. Following extensive in field research, the company launched the Ceva Lung Program in Asia, 15
months ago and since then has rolled out the program throughout the world, gathering valuable data
through expert involvement.

Simple guidelines and an easy-to-use iPad and Android app. have made it much easier to evaluate the
presence and impact of the main respiratory pathogens on farm and in the slaughterhouse and then target
interventions according to the individual herd requirements.

Ceva data shows that the global prevalence of Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae (A.p.) is very high,
reaching 100% of investigated herds in some European countries. The level of pleurisy in slaughter pigs is
also high, averaging 20-30% over the last decade. The economic impact of both diseases is therefore very
significant, as a result of mortality (especially important when it occurs later in the fattening period) and
lower performance (growth, feed conversion ratio). The presence of infections in herds can prolong time
to slaughter by 5- 6 days.

Vaccines are now the method of choice for preventing bacterial diseases such as A.p. and the scientific
data shows that cross serotype vaccines, such as Coglapix™, are the most effective on farms with chronic
problems. Given the huge variation in the presence of serotypes and environmental conditions around the
world, there is not a single, “shotgun” solution to the problem. Ceva’s pre-ESPHM seminar therefore
gathered 140 attendees from 17 countries to share experiences and knowledge gained from the
implementation of successful lung health programs. As well as papers from Ceva’s own veterinarians the
program included presentations from the following world renowned experts:

• Porcine pleuropneumonia – the need for accurate unceasing monitoring for efficient control - Prof. Paolo Martelli, University of Parma, Italy 
• Evolution in the Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae serotype distribution and its implication. Prof. Dan Tucker, University of Cambridge, UK
• Increasing need for the efficient prevention of porcine pleuropneumonia to accomplish reduced use of antibiotics  - Prof. Dominiek Maes, Ghent University, Belgium

Dr. Stefano Gozio, Head of Ceva’s Swine marketing said: “We need to create partnerships with expert
veterinarians if we are to achieve better preventative respiratory health on farms. This was the objective of
our symposium; we believe that more sharing of knowledge between professionals – producers and
veterinarians through tools such as the Ceva Lung program is the future for our industry.”

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