Re: Korea - High pathogenic avian flu outbreak on a duck farm prompts quarantine on 24 farms, suspected H5N1, or H5N8? - Chungbuk province
Re: Korea - High pathogenic avian flu outbreak on a duck farm prompts quarantine on 24 farms, suspected H5N1, or H5N8? - Chungbuk province
H5N8 have been recorded as LPAI such as in the cases described below:
(1)
Low pathogenic avian influenza (poultry), United States of America
Information received on 03/09/2008 from Dr John Clifford, Deputy Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Washington, United States of America
? Summary
Report type
Immediate notification
Start date
25/08/2008
Date of first confirmation of the event
02/09/2008
Report date
03/09/2008
Date submitted to OIE
04/09/2008
Reason for notification Reoccurrence of a listed disease
Date of previous occurrence 07/2008
Causal agent
Low pathogenic avian influenza virus Serotype H5N8
Nature of diagnosis Laboratory (advanced)
This event pertains to a defined zone within the country
? New outbreaks
* Outbreak 1 - Payette County, Payette County, IDAHO
Date of start of the outbreak
25/08/2008
Outbreak status
Continuing (or date resolved not provided)
Epidemiological unit Farm
Affected animals: Species - Susceptible - Cases - Deaths - Destroyed - Slaughtered
* Birds - 30000 - ... - ... - 0 - 0
Affected population: Approximately 30,000 game birds (pheasants, chukars, partridges, mallard ducks) which are bred and used for release activities (hunting).
? There is no report of major mortality losses in the game birds.
? At this time, the positive results only trace back to the pheasant pen (approximately 1,000 pheasants).
? The game birds were last reported to be PCR negative on AI testing performed in July 2008.
Summary of outbreaks Total outbreaks: 1
Outbreak statistics: Species - Apparent morbidity rate - Apparent mortality rate - Apparent case fatality rate - Proportion susceptible animals lost*
* Birds - ** - ** - ** - **
* Removed from the susceptible population through death, destruction and/or slaughter
** Not calculated because of missing information
? Epidemiology
Source of the outbreak(s) or origin of infection
Contact with wild species
? Epidemiological comments
? The game bird owner recently submitted three dead birds to the Pennsylvania Animal Diagnostic Laboratory and Pennsylvania State University (PSU) for diagnostic work-up.
? The PSU laboratory identified Pasturella and Mycoplasma from culture but also ran the PCR test for avian influenza (AI), which is a routine testing procedure. The PCR test gave positive results for AI. Samples were also forwarded to the National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL) for confirmation.
? 29 August 2008: the NVSL confirmed an H5 positive, N1 negative PCR finding.
? The premises was quarantined by the Idaho Department of Agriculture on 29 August 2008.
? Enhanced surveillance and epidemiological investigation of the game bird premises began on 29 August 2008 by the Idaho Department of Agriculture officials, in conjunction with USDA APHIS Veterinary Services personnel.
? 2 September 2008: the NVSL confirmed and reported an H5N8 positive virus from samples taken from pheasants on the game bird premises.
? 3 September 2008: sequencing results from NVSL were compatible with low pathogenic avian influenza. The sequence is approximately 98.5% similar to A/mallard/BC/373/2005 H5N2 and 98.3% similar to A/tundra swan/AK/44049-168/2006 H5N2.
Note by the OIE Animal Health Information Department: H5 and H7 avian influenza in its low pathogenic form in poultry is a notifiable disease as per Chapter 2.7.12. on avian influenza of the Terrestrial Animal Health Code.
? Control measures
Measures applied
Quarantine
Vaccination prohibited
No treatment of affected animals
Measures to be applied
Disinfection of infected premises/establishment(s)
? Diagnostic test results
Laboratory name and type Pennsylvania Animal Diagnostic Lab (Local laboratory)
Tests and results: Species - Test - Test date - Result
* Birds - polymerase chain reaction (PCR) - 27/08/2008 - Positive
Laboratory name and type National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL) (National laboratory)
Tests and results: Species - Test - Test date - Result
* Birds - real-time reverse transcriptase/polymerase chain reaction (RRT-PCR) - 02/09/2008 - Positive
Laboratory name and type NVSL (National laboratory)
Tests and results: Species - Test - Test date - Result
* Birds - haemagglutination inhibition test (HIT) - 02/09/2008 - Positive
* Birds - neuraminidase inhibition assay - 02/09/2008 - Positive
* Birds - virus isolation - 02/09/2008 - Positive
* Birds - virus sequencing - 03/09/2008 - Positive
? Future Reporting
The event is continuing. Weekly follow-up reports will be submitted.
? Map of outbreak locations Location of current outbreaks
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Low-pathogenic avian flu hits Idaho game farm
Lisa Schnirring Staff Writer
Sep 5, 2008 (CIDRAP News) ?
Agriculture officials in Idaho announced yesterday that it is investigating an outbreak of low-pathogenic avian influenza at a game farm in the southwestern part of the state after a federal lab confirmed the virus in pheasants.
The virus has been identified as subtype H5N8, according to a Sep 3 report that the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) filed with the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE).
The farm contains about 30,000 game birds that are raised for hunting activities, the report said. Besides pheasants, the farm has chukars, partridges, and mallard ducks.
State officials quarantined the farm on Aug 29 but have not culled any birds at the site, located in Payette County. However, Larry Hawkins, a USDA spokesman, said 300 birds that the farm shipped to California for a bird dog event before the virus was detected were quarantined and culled, the Associated Press (AP) reported today.
The farm's owner did not report an unusual number of bird deaths, but in late August sent three dead pheasants to a lab at Pennsylvania State University for a diagnostic work-up, according to the OIE report.
The lab found Pasturella and Mycoplasma in the samples. Routine tests also revealed avian influenza. Sequence testing at the USDA's National Veterinary Services Laboratory led to the H5N8 finding on Sep 3.
The virus seems to trace back only to the pheasant pen, which contains about 1,000 birds, the report said.
Officials have not determined the source of the virus but suspect that it came from contact with wild birds. Bill Barton, a veterinarian with Idaho's Department of Agriculture, told the AP that the pheasants were kept in an outside pen that was covered with plastic mesh. He said they could have been exposed to the virus from wild birds that flew or roosted overhead.
David Halvorson, DVM, a veterinary pathologist and avian flu expert at the University of Minnesota in St. Paul, told CIDRAP News that a wild-bird source of the virus sounds plausible. "They [the game birds] are like live decoys. They'll attract wild birds to their pens because of the feed and water," he said.
Though low-pathogenic H5N8 hasn't been seen in the United States over the past several years, there's nothing alarming about finding the virus at the Idaho farm, he said. "It's not unusual to find an oddball low-path virus."
Barton said the findings of the investigation will determine how long the birds should be quarantined and if culling is necessary, the AP reported. He said authorities are testing birds at farms within a 2-mile radius of the site and disinfecting the affected game farm.
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authorities said, adding that such a result would have major ramifications. (Yonhap News):tiphat:
