In 2010, foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) occurred for the first time in a decade in Japan. Because the disease continued to spread despite implementation of movement restriction, we conducted a case-control study to elucidate the risk factors associated with the FMD transmission under movement restriction. As there was a large difference in the final prevalence rate in the epidemic area, risk factors were examined separately for two areas. Farm investigations were conducted by using a questionnaire including different parameters such as herd size, farm location, and movement of people and vehicles, among others. In the high-prevalence area, the disease was likely to spread irrespective of the movement of people or vehicles. However, physical barriers around the farms seemed to reduce the risk of FMD transmission. These results suggest that local spread, such as air- and dust-borne transmissions from surrounding contaminated environments, played a major role in disease transmission in this area. In the low-prevalence area, the disease seemed to be transmitted by the movements of people or vehicles. These results seemed useful for enhancement of control measures against FMD epidemics in the future.
(Viral Disease and Epidemiology Research Division)
References:
- Muroga et al (2012) J. Vet. Med. Sci. 74(4):399-404
- Muroga et al (2013) BMC Vet. Res. 9:150
- Foot-and-Mouth Disease Epidemiological Investigation Team. (2013) Interim Report on the Epidemiological Investigation of Foot-and-Mouth Disease Cases. 12-16
http://www.maff.go.jp/j/syouan/douei/katiku_yobo/k_fmd/pdf/hokan-houkoku.pdf
