Schmallenberg virus is a newly emerging disease. Between August and October 2011, outbreaks of disease in adult cattle that included mild to moderate fever, reduced milk yield, loss of appetite, loss of body condition and diarrhea were reported in the Netherlands and Germany. From December 2011, abortion and stillbirths associated with fetal abnormalities, affecting mainly sheep but also cattle and goats, were identified in the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium. A new virus was identified in November 2011 as the cause of both conditions. This was named ‘Schmallenberg virus’ after the German town where the virus was first identified. Midges have been blamed for the spread of the virus over the English Channel to the United Kingdom.
 |
| www.telegraph.co.uk |
Prof Malcolm Bennett, Professor of Veterinary Pathology at the University of Liverpool, specializing in zoonoses and emerging diseases, said Schmallenberg is more of a risk to the economy than humans.
"Other viruses in the group do not infect people, so Schmallenberg virus is unlikely to be a direct risk to public health. However, the economic and social effects of the disease for farmers whose animals are infected are still to be seen. The main effect in sheep is on unborn lambs, so only now, as we enter the peak period for lambing, are we beginning to see the extent and severity of the disease. Reports so far suggest that on affected farms between 10 per cent and 50 per cent of lambs are lost to the infection, and this could easily ruin an industry that has only just begun to recover after years of economic struggle. Because of the difference in the lengths of pregnancy between sheep and cattle, it will be another three to four months before we know what effect it might have on the cattle industry.”
Further information:
No comments:
Post a Comment