So Far This Is Only An Epizootic

So far this is only an epizootic

The first FMD outbreak this year has occurred in Russia. The virus, the focus of which was found in the Vladimir region, got into the dairy products of a well-known manufacturer supplied to the Moscow retail chains. According to the authorities, the outbreak of infection has been suppressed, there is no data on the sick people. Infectionists advise not to drink raw milk, and make cottage cheese and butter only from pasteurized milk.

Foot and mouth disease virus. Photo: wikipedia.org /

The first FMD outbreak this year has occurred in Russia. The virus, the focus of which was found in the Vladimir region, got into the dairy products of a well-known manufacturer supplied to the Moscow retail chains. According to the authorities, the outbreak of infection has been suppressed, there is no data on the sick people. Infectionists advise not to drink raw milk, and make cottage cheese and butter only from pasteurized milk.

FMD scandal

Rospotrebnadzor withdraws from the turnover 3.8 thousand tons of dairy products produced at the Yuryev-Polsky plant of the Opolye holding, which supplies its products to the retail chains of Moscow. We are talking, among other things, about different packages of milk, kefir and yogurt under the brand name "House in the Village".

Earlier it became known that the management of Rospotrebnadzor in the Vladimir region discovered a FMD outbreak in the village of Vyshmanovo, Sobinsky district, Vladimir region, where VKV LLC is located, which supplies raw milk to Opolye for industrial processing. Signs of the disease were found in 120 dairy cows.

“Products of a limited range, produced from October 1 to October 19, 2016, are withdrawn from circulation, only those names that do not undergo repeated pasteurization or sterilization according to technology … Products that have undergone repeated pasteurization, as well as manufactured since October 20, 2016, are not dangerous for consumers. represents and can be in circulation without restrictions ", - noted in Rospotrebnadzor. Milk disinfection is achieved by pasteurization at 85 ° C or boiling.

The manufacturer - Wim-Bill-Dann - seized the goods from retail chains on their own by the Rospotrebnadzor. Meanwhile, the company considers the measures taken to be excessive, since the FMD virus is completely destroyed during heat treatment. “Our products can be consumed without any fear: we are confident in the safety and high quality of our products,” the company said in a statement.

What is foot and mouth disease

Foot and mouth disease is an acute viral disease caused by one of the variants of the virus types O, A, C, CAT-1, CAT-2, CAT-3 and Asia-1. The infection affects cloven-hoofed animals, but humans can also get foot and mouth disease. The disease is manifested by flu-like symptoms, general intoxication, profuse salivation and ulcerative lesions of the mucous membranes of the mouth and nose. Ulcers also appear on the skin of the face, forearms, hands (especially between the fingers), feet and legs. The duration of the disease is about two weeks. Treatment is local and symptomatic. Antibiotics are powerless against the virus, but they may be required when a bacterial infection is attached. Possible bacterial complications of foot and mouth disease include pneumonia, myocarditis, purulent skin diseases. The incubation period of the disease is on average 4-5, up to a maximum of 12 days.

Even cats and dogs get sick

As the chief freelance specialist in the field of infectious diseases of the Ministry of Health of Russia, Ph. D. Professor of the Department of Infectious Diseases and Epidemiology, Moscow State Medical University A. I. Evdokimova Irina Shestakova, today we can say that the outbreak of foot and mouth disease in the Vladimir region is an epizootic. That is, only animals are sick, and there are no cases of human diseases. Almost a thousand people who live in this area were examined. Not only contact people, but also their family members.

According to the expert, the FMD virus is quite stable in the environment, and can persist at a temperature of 18 degrees and a humidity of 30-40% for up to two years. Cattle, pigs, rarely sheep, goats, and deer can become a source of infection for humans. Horses, camels, dogs, cats and rodents can be infected from them.

“Transmission of infection among animals is carried out through non-disinfected products and raw materials received from animals sick with foot-and-mouth disease, as well as feed, water, bedding, care items, clothing and footwear of people, vehicles on which the foot-and-mouth disease virus can persist for a long time. Small particles of feed, soil, litter, etc. infected with the foot and mouth disease virus can be carried by the wind over a distance of several kilometers,”Shestakova said.

According to her, a week ago, the Russian Ministry of Health sent out to the regions a memo for medical personnel on the diagnosis and treatment of foot and mouth disease in humans. The main route of human infection is through the raw milk of sick animals and products of its processing, less often through meat. In people who are in direct contact with sick animals, direct transmission of infection is possible (during milking, care, treatment, slaughter), airborne infection (when breathing, coughing animals), as well as infection through objects contaminated with animal secretions. The infection is not transmitted from person to person. Children are more susceptible to foot and mouth disease than adults.

“Prevention of foot and mouth disease in humans consists in observing personal precautions in the outbreak and sanitary and veterinary measures (during milking, care, treatment, slaughter, when using equipment and objects contaminated with the secretions of sick animals). Pasteurization and boiling of milk, preparation of butter from processed cream, as well as careful observance of safety measures when caring for sick animals and possible contact with them are mandatory, "Shestakova notes.

A virus from nowhere

According to the Rosselkhoznadzor, the outbreak of the disease in the Vladimir region, where the Yuryev-Polsky dairy plant is located, has already been suppressed, all sick cows have been liquidated, healthy livestock have been vaccinated, and the department's specialists are monitoring the epidemiological situation.

As noted in the department, this is the first outbreak of foot and mouth disease in 2016. In May, the International Epizootic Bureau recognized Russia as a country free of foot and mouth disease. This fact could facilitate the access of Russian agricultural products to the international market. However, the situation has now changed. A restriction on the import of Russian meat and milk due to the outbreak of foot and mouth disease has already been introduced by the Ministry of Agriculture of Kazakhstan.

According to the head. laboratory of the Institute of Poliomyelitis and Viral Encephalitis. M. P. Chumakova Alexandra Lukashev, FMD outbreaks periodically occur all over the world. This happens especially often in Africa. However, 15 years ago, a large outbreak of foot and mouth disease occurred in the UK and spread throughout the country and even beyond, completely paralyzing livestock production. Not only farms and rural areas, but also forests were closed to the public, and many sports competitions were canceled.

Meanwhile, according to Lukashev, there is an effective veterinary vaccine against foot and mouth disease for animals. It is widely used in Russia, and therefore it is not even entirely clear where the Vladimir virus could come from.

Meanwhile

Today it became known about a new misfortune. According to the Rosselkhoznadzor, the pork imported from the Voronezh region contained the genetic material of the African swine fever virus. “The genetic material of the ASF virus was detected by laboratory means in samples taken from pork half carcasses in the Serpukhov district of the Moscow region, produced by OOO GlavMyasProm, Borisoglebsk district, Voronezh region. Pork has been withdrawn from circulation and is subject to destruction, a complex of antiepizootic measures is being carried out,”the agency's website says.