AFBI hosts the 8th European Veterinary Surveillance Network (EVSN) 2015 meeting

Close to 40 veterinary scientists (pathologists, virologists, epidemiologists etc) involved in animal disease surveillance in Switzerland, Belgium, the Netherlands, England & Wales, Scotland, the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland were in attendance.

The annual EVSN meetings provide a forum for European animal disease surveillance scientists to share experiences, build relationships and update their knowledge on common themes. An effective local rapid surveillance system is essential to provide early warning of the introduction of new animal diseases or changing patterns of existing diseases.  The 2015 meeting included presentations on a number of key issues including emerging trends in animal disease, horizon scanning, harmonisation of surveillance networks, future challenges for disease surveillance and case reports.

The talks given included an update on control programmes for infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR) and bovine viral diarrhoea (BVD) virus in Belgium.  IBR control in Belgium started in 1997 with a ban on the use of conventional vaccines and the introduction of a voluntary control programme. The voluntary programme was replaced in 2012 by a compulsory programme, which requires all herds to have an IBR status assigned based on serological results obtained by sampling all animals over 12 months-old. The programme has progressed well and in 2014 Belgium was awarded Article 9 status under EU Directive 64/432/EEC (approved control programme with additional guarantees).  A compulsory BVD eradication programme started in Belgium in January 2015 and is based on the testing of all newborn calves within 7 days after birth. Persistently infected (PI) animals are banned from trade; culling of PIs is not required but is recommended. So far, 0.6% of calves have been found to be persistently infected.

Two presentations were given on Mycoplasma bovis, which highlighted it as an emerging problem of increasing importance in dairy herds.  Common clinical manifestations are pneumonia, arthritis, otitis media and mastitis.

The group heard that in Scotland, whilst the proportion of mastitis and arthritis cases due to Mycoplasma bovis has been more or less the same over the last few years, the proportion of pneumonia cases due to this pathogen significantly increased in 2015. Options for diagnosis and control were discussed.  In Belgium it was also considered an emerging problem of the cattle industry.

A presentation was given on an investigation of a clinical case which included post mortem examination, isolation of the pathogen from mastitis samples and the use of bulk tank milk PCR.

One of the big animal disease challenges for the future is increased resistance to therapeutic agents, namely antimicrobials and anthelmintics.

The meeting heard about the detection of Livestock Associated Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureuss (LA-MRSA) in pigs in Northern Ireland and the follow-up investigations and molecular typing undertaken. There were also presentations on anthelmintic resistance in liver fluke and gastrointestinal nematodes in sheep in Northern Ireland and a project in Belgium to review practical means to reduce the antibiotic drug in the veal industry.

During the meeting there was opportunity to discuss the changes and challenges to scanning surveillance in all the participating regions.  An update was given by colleagues in England and Wales on the recent changes in the animal surveillance system and their effect on the number of submissions. As a way to address the decreasing submissions and surveillance data, the meeting heard of a project which recently commenced to look at making better use of surveillance data by increasing the collection and analysis of other data sources with the view to enabling the detection of new and re-emerging threats.

Two presentations dealt with how Switzerland and the Republic of Ireland have sought to increase disease surveillance in pigs.  In Switzerland, the “PathoPig” project aims are to strengthen post-mortem examination and diagnostic networks and to improve collaboration between producers, vets and diagnostic laboratories.

The project consists of providing subsidised laboratory costs, having a standardised data collection form filled by the vet for each submission and the issuing of a laboratory report which includes specific treatment recommendations. This is followed up by a farm visit 3-6 months later to review if the recommendations were taken on board and whether the herd health improved. In the majority of the herds the herd health had improved on the second visit and the overall number of pig PM submissions increased.

In the Republic of Ireland, a discussion group with specialised practitioners was set up as well as subsidized collection of carcasses from farms. The number of post mortem examinations of pig carcasses doubled between 2013 and 2014, helping to maintain and improve expertise and leading to specific studies such as a porcine neonatal diarrhoea project.

The need to improve the effectiveness of animal disease surveillance systems within constrained budgets, to improve the dissemination of information and to maintain vital expertise in the face of increasing or emerging disease threats were issues that were common to all regions.

by Maria Guelbenzu, AFBI Veterinary Sciences Division
 

Notes to editors: 

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