Disease Information
9 March 2001
Vol. 14 - No. 10
FOOT AND MOUTH DISEASE IN TAIPEI CHINA
See also: 3 November 2000, 3 March 2000, 25 February 2000, 4 February 2000
(Date of last previously reported outbreak: October 2000).
Emergency report
Text of a fax received on 5 March 2001 from Dr Watson H.T. Sung, Deputy Director General, Bureau of Animal and Plant Inspection and Quarantine, Council of Agriculture, Taipei:
Report date: 2 March 2001.
Nature of diagnosis: clinical and laboratory.
Date of initial detection of animal health incident: 25 February 2001.
Estimated date of first infection: 23 February 2001.
Outbreaks:
Location No. of outbreaks Taipei prefecture (in the northern part of the island) 1
Description of affected population: pigs in the pen of an abattoir.
Total number of animals in the outbreak:
species susceptible cases deaths destroyed slaughtered sui 101 3 0 3 0
Diagnosis: on 25 February 2001, three pigs were found to be infected by routine inspection (vesicles were observed on the feet of the pigs). Fluid from the vesicles was collected for diagnosis purposes.
A. Laboratory where diagnosis was made: National Institute for Animal Health (NIAH).
B. Diagnostic tests used: RT-PCR(1) (positive); antigen ELISA(2) (type O); DNA sequencing test.
C. Causal agent: results of DNA sequence analysis: VP1 is 97.2% similar to type O/Taiwan/97.
Epidemiology:
A. Source of agent / origin of infection: under investigation.
B. Mode of spread: it was suspected that FMD antibodies of the pigs were depressed by stress due to transportation or fast-swifting climate.
C. Other epidemiological details: the 101 suspect pigs in the abattoir were delivered from three pig farms located in Nantou prefecture (in the central part of the island) and Kaohsiung prefecture (in the southern part of the island). The farms all had full FMD vaccinated records and no other FMD case was found by tracing-back inspection.
Control measures: the three infected pigs were destroyed immediately when clinical signs were observed. Control programme covering the whole country; testing; vaccination.
(1) RT-PCR: reverse transcriptase - polymerase chain reaction.
(2) ELISA: enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.