Isolation of in turkey flocks with skeletal abnormalities: a retrospective study.

, a pathogen affecting the turkey industry, is commonly associated with decreased hatchability and leg abnormalities in young progeny. This was in the spotlight more in the past than today since its prevalence has been decreasing over time. Reports of in turkeys showing reduced growth performances, leg problems and skeletal abnormalities are scarce although there is no report whether this pathogen has been completely eradicated in commercial turkeys. Additionally, there are no comprehensive epidemiological data available on prevalence in any country. Therefore, we carried out a retrospective study to evaluate the prevalence of the infection and any correlation between necropsy findings and presence in Italian turkeys between 2011 and 2012. Necropsy was performed on 101 dead turkey submissions presented for diagnostic purposes. Fifty-six submissions (55.4%) tested positive for , most of which (69.6%) were between 4 and 7 weeks of age. Skeletal abnormalities were observed in 36 cases (35.6%). The logistic regression analysis revealed that the probability of finding a -positive submission was four times higher if the animals showed skeletal abnormalities (OR = 4.48, IC 95%: 1.66-12.15). This is the first retrospective, cross-sectional study on field outbreaks in commercial turkeys. These results suggest that should be considered as a differential diagnosis when skeletal abnormalities are observed. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS was found in more than half of the turkey groups analysed. was likely to be detected if skeletal abnormalities were present in the studied turkeys.