A retrospective study on the epidemiology of foot-and-mouth disease in Bhutan

Abstract

A retrospective study on the outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in Bhutan, between the years 1996 and 2008, based on the data collected through passive surveillance, was undertaken. A total of 230 outbreaks of FMD at sub-district level were recorded in 299 villages located in 19 out of the 20 districts in the country. There were no significant differences between the years (P = 0.998) or months (P = 0.989) on the incidence of FMD. The sub-districts in the north (altitude >1,000 m above mean sea level) had significantly (P = 0.008) higher incidences of outbreaks in winter than in summer. The sub-districts that shared border with India had significantly more outbreaks than those that didn't (P = 0.001). Cattle were the most predominant species affected being involved in all of the outbreaks reported. Serotype O, which constituted 70.6% of the outbreaks typed was the most predominant serotype prevalent in Bhutan followed by A (16.7%), Asia 1 (8.8%), and C (3.9%). Cattle density was significantly positively correlated (P = 0.023) with the incidence of disease. Three waves of outbreaks of epidemic proportions were reported in 1997/1998, 2002/2003, and 2007/2008 due to the PanAsia strain of the O serotype. The study highlights the incursion of the PanAsia strain of the O serotype into the country, possibly, through the transboundary movement of animals and the need for active surveillance of FMD, especially at the border areas. The study also highlights the significance of the O serotype and cattle as the main indicator species in the epidemiology of FMD in Bhutan. The findings from this study can be used as baseline epidemiological data for further research to understand the epidemiology of FMD in Bhutan.

The role of global trade and transport network topology in the human‐mediated dispersal of alien species

“…Even in networks with largely assortative mixing, a small amount of disassortive mixing greatly increases the risk of infestation or infection for nodes in the rest of the network. This has been found in real-world sexual contact and animal trade networks (Doherty et al 2005, Dukpa et al 2011, Adams et al 2012.…”

Anthropogenic and environmental risk factors for rabies occurrence in Bhutan

“…Human rabies incidents are also reported from south Bhutan-India border towns because of rabid dog bites and failure of immediate post exposure treatment (Bhutantimes, 2011;Kuensel, 2009;2011a, b), suggesting that a rabies control and surveillance program may need to be focussed in these areas. Similarly, other livestock diseases such as foot-and-mouth disease have also been found to be reported mostly in those sub-districts that share a border with India, compared to those sub-districts that do not (Dukpa et al, 2011). Therefore, crossborder coordinated efforts are necessary for elimination of human rabies transmitted by dogs and other diseases of public health and economic importance.…”

Epidemiology of foot and mouth disease in Karnataka state, India: a retrospective study

“…The highest number of districts with outbreaks was in 2007-08 (n = 27) and 2005-06 (n = 26). There was a significant difference in the number of districts Retrospective studies, based on the analysis of available data and passive surveillance have contributed greatly to the understanding of the epidemiology of FMD in other states of India [3,15,19] and in other endemic countries such as Bhutan [7], Laos [8], and Mali [14]. This report is the first to describe the status of FMD in the state of Karnataka, India.…”