USDA Issues Revised Senecavirus A Guidelines

April 6, 2016 — 

The USDA has issued a revised guidance document describing procedures and responsibilities for handling herds suspected of having senecavirus A to ensure that foreign animal disease investigations occur per agency guidelines. Accredited veterinarians must immediately report all diagnosed or suspected cases of animal diseases not known to exist in the United States to State or Federal animal health officials and take precautions to prevent the spread of communicable diseases. Any swine having vesicular lesions are suspects for foreign animal diseases, such as foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), until determined otherwise by Veterinary Services (VS) via the Foreign Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory and through authorized testing at approved National Animal Health Laboratory Network (NAHLN) laboratories. Vesicular lesions in swine are caused by several viral pathogens, including FMD, swine vesicular disease, vesicular stomatitis virus, and Senecavirus A. They cannot be differentiated without diagnostic testing. The guidance document is posted on the AASV website.