Suspected Nutritional Myopathy in Vietnamese Potbellied Pigs (Sus scrofa)

A myopathy of skeletal muscle was diagnosed in five Vietnamese potbellied piglets (Sus scrofa); it was acute in onset and fatal in three of the animals. The two surviving piglets responded to supportive therapy, which included i.m. injections of vitamin E (10 mg/kg) and selenium (0.4 mg/kg). Hyaline degeneration and necrosis of muscle fibers were the only pathologic findings. All affected piglets appeared to have been in otherwise good health. Blood vitamin E and selenium levels from unaffected littermates were adequate when compared to domestic swine, but requirements for Vietnamese potbellied pigs have not been established.