Ensuring animal health and well-being requires animal-based measures for early and direct intervention at the point of care. Insight into the pathophysiology of Swine Inflammation and Necrosis Syndrome (SINS) has led to a non-invasive, clinical scoring system that can be used in daily practice. This provides information on the cause of observed lesions for direct intervention in affected herds. The aim of the current study was to re-evaluate the practicality of the SINS scoring system under field conditions. In addition, this is the first study to provide insight into the prevalence of SINS on Dutch farms. This study involved the scoring of 5958 piglets from 20 visits on 13 farms randomly selected by a veterinary practice in the Netherlands. The results showed that up to 64.1% of the piglets had visible inflammatory alterations in different body parts within the first seven days of life. Sow rectal temperature, signs of coprostasis and water intake during pregnancy were significantly (p ≤ 0.05) correlated with the prevalence of SINS in piglets. In conclusion, the SINS scoring system is an easy-to-use, non-invasive diagnostic tool that summarises animal-based observations at the point of care, providing a valuable communication tool between farmers, nutritionists and veterinarians in their efforts to improve animal health and welfare.

Swine Inflammation and Necrosis Syndrome (SINS) is a highly prevalent, predominantly endogenous condition that compromises tissue integrity and animal welfare across different life stages in pigs. Increasing evidence suggests that early-life SINS lesions may predispose pigs to tail damage later in life; however, longitudinal data remain scarce. This study investigated the association between SINS-related clinical signs in suckling piglets and weaners and subsequent tail integrity during fattening and at slaughter. In a longitudinal study, 352 piglets from two Italian farms producing Parma ham were followed from the suckling phase to slaughter. Although SINS signs were generally mild, pigs affected during the weaner phase showed a 3.5-fold increased risk of developing short tails during fattening. Furthermore, the probability of reduced tail length at slaughter increased from 33.5% to 65.8% in pigs with a history of SINS. Early-life SINS was significantly associated with impaired tail integrity both at the onset of fattening and at slaughter. These new findings highlight endogenous inflammation and necrosis in early life as important yet underrecognized welfare risk factors and suggest that SINS can be utilised as a point of care and early preventive strategies may substantially improve tail integrity and welfare outcomes at slaughter.

Swine Inflammation and Necrosis Syndrome (SINS) is a widespread condition in pigs and has been proposed as an early-life animal-based measure (ABM) for assessing health and welfare. However, its prognostic value for later-life outcomes under commercial conditions remains poorly understood. This study investigated the prevalence, progression, and predictive relevance of SINS in two organic pig farms in the Netherlands. Clinical SINS signs were assessed in suckling and weaned piglets and related to hematological parameters at weaning (35 weaned piglets) as well as tail integrity at slaughter. SINS lesions were highly prevalent in suckling piglets (approximately 80%) but markedly decreased after weaning. Lesion prevalence and severity differed substantially between farms and showed clear age-dependent patterns, peaking between days 3 and 5 of life. Higher SINS scores in suckling piglets were associated with systemic hematological alterations at weaning, including increased monocyte proportions, reduced platelet counts, and altered red blood cell indices. Importantly, early-life SINS was significantly associated with later tail integrity. Pigs with higher SINS scores showed a lower probability of intact tails at slaughter and subsequently a higher prevalence of tail lesions. These findings suggest that SINS may have potential as an early-life indicator of later tail outcomes; however, this hypothesis requires validation in larger studies involving a greater number of farms and production systems.

Swine Inflammation and Necrosis Syndrome (SINS) is characterized by multifocal inflammatory lesions in pigs of different ages and has been associated with systemic inflammatory processes. Therefore, the objective of the present study was to characterize associations between SINS expression and systemic inflammatory, hematological, and metabolic biomarkers in pigs from two farm cooperatives within the same commercial production system. In this exploratory study, 45 undocked piglets were assessed during the suckling and weaner stages. Clinical lesions were quantified across multiple body regions, and clinical-chemical and hematological parameters were analyzed in weaners. LASSO regression identified Pig major acute phase protein (PigMAP) as the biomarker most strongly associated with SINS-related traits, showing positive associations with tail base bristle loss and teat redness, whereas heel swelling and tail tip reddening were negatively associated or showed no association. Additional findings included decreased creatinine and urea under more favorable environmental conditions, and differences in bilirubin, creatine kinase (CK), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), and glutamate dehydrogenase (GLDH) under less favorable conditions, indicating distinct patterns of clinical-chemical parameters associated with SINS. Platelet counts were lower in piglets with SINS status 2, i.e., piglets showing clinical signs of SINS during both the suckling and nursery periods, with statistically significant differences in the respective comparisons. These findings are consistent with the concept of SINS as a systemic inflammatory condition accompanied by measurable hematological and metabolic alterations. Together, these findings broaden the biological characterization of SINS and provide a foundation for future longitudinal studies investigating the temporal relationships between clinical manifestations and systemic biomarkers.