The objective of this study was to compare the prevalence of Salmonella enterica in swine populations estimated by sampling cecal contents versus ileocecal lymph nodes. In each of two abattoirs, four groups of pigs (n=30 pigs per group) were studied. Cecal contents and ileocecal lymph nodes were individually collected and processed for isolation and identification of S. enterica. The overall prevalence found by cecal contents was 40%, whereas by ileocecal lymph nodes it was 22.9% (p\u3c0.05). Combining results from both samples, the prevalence found was 50.8%. The relative sensitivity of cecal content sampling was 79.3%, whereas for ileocecal lymph node sampling it was 45.5%. The agreement (Kappa statistic) between both sample types was 13.1%. This study demonstrates that sampling either cecal contents or ileocecal lymph nodes affects results of S. enterica epidemiological studies. It is recommended that both samples be used
