Proventricular dilatation disease (PDD) is used to describe an inflammatory response characterized by the accumulation of lymphocytes and plasma cells in a bird’s central and peripheral nervous systems, especially the nerves that supply the muscles in the proventriculus and other digestive organs, including the crop, ventriculus and small intestine. This disease was first discussed in the late 1970s in birds imported into the United States and Germany. Subsequently, a PDD epornitic (outbreak of disease in a bird population) has been occurring in psittacine birds in North America and Europe, probably as a result of the widespread importation and shipment of birds for the pet trade.
*For the full article, pick up the July 2008 issue of BIRD TALK**
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