You should not use pg_pconnect - it's broken. It will work but it doesn't really pool, and it's behaviour is unpredictable. It will only make you rise the max_connections parameter in postgresql.conf file until you run out of resources (which will slow your database down).
If you have many concurrent connections to your database, you should use the PostgreSQL connection pooler PgBouncer (developed by the Skype-team). When using pgbouncer, make sure you use pg_connect and NOT pg_pconnect. Also, make sure you close your connections with pg_close.
* PGBouncer homepage:
http://developer.skype.com/SkypeGarage/DbProjects/PgBouncer
* PostgreSQL pooling article by Last.fm:
http://www.last.fm/user/Russ/journal/2008/02/21
/zd_postgres_connection_pools:_pgpool_vs._pgbouncer