Causative agent
  Clostridium perfringens (type B and C)


Differential diagnosis
- Swine dysentery
- Salmonellosis
- Enteritis by anthrax
- TGE
- Proliferative hemorrhagic enteropathy due to
  Campylobacter spp. infection


1. History taking
- High morbidity in susceptible litters
- Infection occurs via oral route
- Infection in piglets occur due to contaminated skin
  of sows with the organism
- Recurrence on the same premises in succeeding
  years


2. Clinical examination
- Occurrence in the first few days of life
- High mortality
- Dullness and depression without fever
- Diarrhea and gross reddening of the anus
- Death within 24 hr


3. Necropsy
- The lining of the intestine may be covered by
  yellow or greyish masses of friable necrotic material
  closely adherent to the surface
- Hemorrhage and gas in wall of jejunum, ileum and
  colon
- Reddening of mesenteric lymph nodes

4. Histopathological observation
- Hemorrhage throughout wall of gut
- Mucosal necrosis and perhaps pseudomembrane,
  submucosal thrombosis
- Shedding of the villi of the jejunum and the
  presence of Gram-positive rods at the bases of the
  crypts


5. Duodenal contents smear
- Smear of intestinal contents is examined for large
   number of clostridia


6. Bacterial isolation
Specimen : small intestine with its contents
Medium    : thioglycolate medium and blood agar
                  plates or egg yolk agar plates
- Culture : incubate anaerobically for 24-48 hours
- Identification : about 3 mm greyish colonies with
  an irregular edge and varying degrees of
  β-hemolysis after 24 hr (see Blackleg)


7. Experimental animal inoculation
- About 70 ml of small intestinal contents
  → centrifuge 7,000-12,000 rpm for 30 min
  → inject 0.1 ml of the supernatant IP into 2-3 mice
  → mice will die within 24 hr by toxemia


8. Toxin detection
- Pure cultured liquid medium → centrifuge 12,000-
  15,000 rpm for 30 min → inoculate the
  supernatant into mice (same as above)


9. Toxin neutralization test
- Each known antitoxin (A to E) is neutralized with
  the toxin before inoculate ID into guinea pig or IP
  into mice