Swine

Pork remains the most widely consumed meat worldwide. The changes in swine production over the years have resulted in increased disease challenges and pathogen transmission due to larger units, increased population density and throughput, due to the significant intensification of production. Antimicrobials have been widely used in swine production over several decades, and management of the rational use of the antimicrobials for control and treatment of diseases is an important responsibility requiring specific veterinary knowledge and understanding. At the same time, great effort has been made in terms of improvement of biosecurity, management practices, and improvement of genetics and health status coming from Specific Pathogen-Free (SPF) farms, in an attempt to control and reduce antimicrobial use. Besides this fact, many bacterial infections require targeted antimicrobial treatment. The three main reasons for antimicrobial administration nowadays in pigs are the treatment of respiratory infections, systemic infections characterised by septicaemia and digestive infections, especially in piglets and finishing pigs. This chapter’s aim is to provide an overview of the major consideration to antimicrobial therapy in swine with a specific focus on selected bacterial diseases, the minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of specific pathogens, the optimal use of antimicrobials utilising their pharmacokinetics, possible alternative tools and biosecurity in swine medicine, considering current developments as well as new veterinary regulations.