Hemorrhagic bowel - Atlas of swine pathology

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Possible causes: Torsion of the stomach and the intestinesHemorrhagic bowel syndrome

Fattening pig that died suddenly in which we can see that both the small and the large intestine are full of gas, and that their wall has become red and thinner. This process is called “haemorrhagic intestine syndrome” and it normally happens when the pigs eat a highly fermentable ration, especially in cases of liquid feeding. The possible role of the infection with clostridia as the cause of the syndrome has been ruled out by numerous authors. We must make a differential diagnosis with intestinal torsion, in which only the twisted part of the intestinal will have a red colour. It could also be mistaken with acute haemorrhagic proliferative enteropathy caused by Lawsonia intracellularis, but in these cases, the affected portion of the intestine is the ileum, although in serious cases it can spread towards the jejunum, caecum and part of the colon, and the intestinal wall would thicken.