Date: Fri 26 Jun 2009
Source: The Jakarta Post [edited]
<http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/06/26/authorities-watchful-after-virus-detected-20-villages.html>
Authorities watchful after virus detected in 20 villages
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At least 20 villages in Purbalingga regency, Central Java, have been
hit with cases of bird flu, forcing local authorities to remain alert
to prevent it from infecting other areas, officials said Thursday [25
Jun 2009]. Purbalingga husbandry office head Hartono said the
contagious disease had 1st been detected in the regency in January 2009.
More than 1000 infected chickens had been culled between January and
May [2009] by local authorities, he said. Hartono said his office was
collecting data and information on the spread of bird flu this month
[June 2009].
"We are continuing to collect data based on information from local
people whose chickens have died suddenly. The tests *on those birds*
have come back positive for bird flu," he told The Jakarta Post. The
chickens were culled, and their bodies incinerated, he said.
"We don't want to take any risks, and such a *culling method* is based
on existing official procedures," he said. Hartono said most of the
virus-infected poultry were domestic chickens that were not kept in
cages. "Because local villagers traditionally have chickens roaming
free, not kept in cages, bird flu has spread very quickly," he said.
To curb the virus from spreading further in Purbalingga, the local
authorities have set up a special team to combat bird flu.
"The team is already working 24 hours a day. Any time we receive a
report on a dead chicken we will go to the location immediately,"
Hartono said. The dead chickens, he said, would be used as samples for
tests.
Purbalingga has also received 240 000 doses of vaccine from the World
Health Organization to help control the spread of bird flu, Hartono
said.
"Around 30 percent of the vaccines have already been used."
The WHO has also provided Purbalingga with anti-bird flu disinfectants.
"We have enough medical stocks to deal with bird flu cases. What we
need to do more is improve people's awareness so they will keep their
poultry cages clean," Hartono said.
[Byline: Agus Maryono]
--
Communicated by:
ProMED-mail Rapporteur Mary Marshall
[Kabupaten (regency) Purbalingga is situated at the centre of Java,
the 5th largest island in Indonesia and the site of its capital city,
Jakarta. Home to a population of 130 million in 2006, Java is the most
populous island in the world. See map at
<http://healthmap.org/promed/en?name=Kabupaten%20Purbalingga,%20ID.07,%20Indonesia&g=6390578&v=-7.284,109.35,5>.
More Indonesians have died from avian influenza than anywhere else in
the world, with 31 of 33 provinces known to have been infected by HPAI
H5N1, which has become endemic. The country's 240 million people are
spread over 6000 inhabited islands. Since 2006, FAO has helped to
train teams of local veterinarians and para-veterinarians in
'participatory disease surveillance and response (PDS/R)' techniques.
Veterinarians and paravets are engaging community members, tapping
into their local knowledge and involving them in control efforts.
Villagers are also trained to detect and report bird flu cases in
poultry and be responsible for their own safety and that of their
families.
In 2006, the veterinary programme was 1st implemented as a pilot
programme in 12 districts, rapidly expanding to cover 159 districts,
comprising the islands of Java and Bali, as well as 2 provinces of
Sumatra, by May 2007. When the programme was initiated, the extent of
HPAI infection was not known. Participatory disease surveillance
enhanced the sensitivity of the national surveillance system, and
within 3 months of establishing the PDS/R programme it became clear
that HPAI was circulating unimpeded in backyard poultry, with several
outbreaks detected per district per month in the pilot areas. Field
diagnosis of HPAI in Indonesia is based upon detecting active
outbreaks that meet the definition of a 'sudden death outbreak' and
which return positive results for the Antigen type A influenza rapid
test. Within the 1st 12 months of operation, the PDS/R programme
detected 800 HPAI disease events. The large number of outbreaks
detected by the PDS teams overwhelmed the response capacity of the
district animal health infrastructure, and led to recognition of the
need to re-evaluate the national control strategy.
Further reading:
C.C. Jost, J.C. Mariner, P.L. Roeder, E. Sawitri & G.J.
Macgregor-Skinner. Participatory epidemiology in disease surveillance
and research. Rev. sci. tech. Off. int. Epiz., 2007, 26 (3), 537-549.
- Mod.AS]
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