[1]
Date: 21 Dec 2000
From: John Lawrence
Martin Hugh-Jones has asked for my comments on the BBC report on the
anthrax outbreak in Zimbabwe. I have no direct information on the outbreak,
but The Herald, the national daily newspaper, published a front page report
on 16 Dec 2000 stating that the ongoing outbreak in Mhondoro had caused 9
human and 44 cattle deaths, with 630 people treated for suspected anthrax
symptoms and 4 hospitalised.
As the symptoms that people were reporting at the clinics included stomach
pains and diarrhoea, headaches, fever, small skin lesions and coughs, I
assume that most of the suspected anthrax cases were not anthrax. The BBC
report may have given an erroneous impression of a major pandemic. Patients
with gastrointestinal anthrax have reported-case fatality rates ranging
from 25 percent to 75 percent, much, much higher than those reported here.
Typically, gastrointestinal anthrax is characterized by abdominal distress
is followed by fever, signs of septicemia and death. [Not exactly the
picture described in the article. - Mod.PC]
Localised outbreaks of anthrax are not uncommon in the communal farming
areas. Recent monthly newsletters from the Department of Veterinary
Services have reported an outbreak in September [2000] in Mt. Darwin
district, with 33 cattle and 37 goat deaths and 7 human cases, none fatal,
and another in November in Makoni district, with 25 cattle deaths and 15
human cases, of which 2 were fatal. Such outbreaks are usually brought
under control quickly once a diagnosis has been made, by the application of
public health measures and vaccination of cattle.
--
[As Martin is on holiday, I will just thank John Lawrence for his excellent
information and comments on behalf of all of us at ProMED-mail. As the
next item indicates, there is a lot at stake for Zimbabwe concerning this
situation, so we will be interested to here more as the outbreak resolves
or continues. - Mod.PC]
********
[2]
Date: Fri, 22 Dec 2000 13:04:25 -0500
From: ProMED-mail <promed@promedmail.org>
Source: Africa News Service, Zimbabwe Independent, 22 Dec 2000 [edited]
EU Veterinary Experts To Inspect Zimbabwe's Cattle
--------------------------------------------------
European Union veterinary experts are coming to inspect Zimbabwe's cattle
in mid-January at a time when the beef industry is under threat from an
outbreak of anthrax in parts of Mashonaland West and Mashonaland East, the
Zimbabwe Independent has established.
There are also fears that the devastating foot-and-mouth disease could
break out in Masvingo province where villagers and war veterans have moved
their cattle into wildlife areas. EU resident representative to Zimbabwe
Asger Pilegaard this week confirmed that a team of inspectors would be
coming to Zimbabwe to probe the threat of foot-and-mouth disease in the
source areas for export beef.
Zimbabwe has a 9200-tonne beef export quota to the EU which earns the
country about $1 billion in foreign currency annually. Veterinary sources
said the EU experts would also monitor the anthrax outbreak and efforts to
contain the disease. Cattle Producers Association (CPA) chief executive
Paul d'Hotman in a statement this week said cattle farmers had to move
quickly to improve surveillance before the arrival of the EU team. "There
is an extreme sense of urgency to get things moving in early January," said
d'Hotman. "If we cannot convince the EU vets that our shortcomings are
being addressed, we will almost certainly lose our EU quota," he said. He
said [the situation] in rural areas was making the enforcement of
veterinary regulations difficult. He, however, said the farmers had to be
proactive.
"One of Dr Hargreaves' major concerns is the lack of surveillance,
particularly farm inspections in the commercial sector as a result of fuel
shortages and lack of funds," said d'Hotman. He said Hargreaves proposed a
two-pronged "attack" to address this problem. The first was a coordinated
community inspection by close liaison with the local veterinary office.
Here producers carry out farm inspections in a coordinated fashion by
moving the animal health inspector around the district. The other is
on-farm producer surveillance in which farmers attend inspection
demonstrations by the district veterinary officer. A group of producers
could then become "accredited" to inspect their own animals. He said the
plan should be put in motion immediately after the Christmas and New Year
holidays.
There is a real threat of an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in the
southeastern Low-veld where war veterans have [moved into] the Save
Conservancy. [They] have pulled down the veterinary fence resulting in
cattle straying into wildlife areas.
--
ProMED-mail
<promed@promedmail.org>
[Clearly there is a great deal of merit in utilizing all resources
available for surveillance, when it must be done under disruptive and
difficult situations. The identification of Foot and Mouth Disease, for
example, is well within the reach of individuals with limited training
and/or individuals with a traditional medicine background. However, great
caution must be used in health certification for export. Another
difficulty in this scheme is that some diseases are hard to diagnose even
for trained, professional veterinarians. So, not all animal diseases can
be dealt with appropriately in this manner. However, the creative use of
various type of individuals to watch for established disease or new,
emerging diseases should be applauded. - Mod
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