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(ARA) - Vigilance, not panic, is what is needed to manage an emerging disease threat like H1N1, according to Dr. Corrie Brown, University of Georgia, Athens.
Dr. Brown has been working with some of the leading experts in the world to learn the real story behind emerging diseases like H1N1. The report, "Sustaining Global Surveillance and Response to Emerging Zoonotic Diseases," was released in January by the National Academy of Sciences.
The quick response to the recent H1N1 outbreak is an indication that infectious diseases surveillance systems can play an important role in safeguarding human and animal health. Investigators quickly identified the source of the disease via a cluster of pneumonia symptoms in Mexico, tracked the spread of diseases through the Centers for Disease Control and researchers quickly developed a response strategy via an effective vaccine.
Brown notes that zoonotic diseases, those that begin in animals, account for at least 75 percent of recent major disease outbreaks. Developing a better understanding of the connection between animal health and human health is just one of the areas that Brown and the group recognized as key areas to explore.
As a veterinary pathologist and expert in bioterrorism, Dr. Brown and her colleagues at the American College of Veterinary Pathologists (ACVP) are working toward helping the world learn more about ongoing public health threats to prevent major outbreaks. "It is critical that we learn from the past and put that knowledge into good use to protect future generations," she says.
"We know that chimpanzees were the original host of HIV, rodents were discovered to be the original hosts of typhus and the plague, and sheep are considered to be the first hosts of syphilis, to name a few. We also know that many of the recent high-profile diseases have started in wildlife hosts and spread to humans: SARS, West Nile Virus, avian influenza, and the list goes on and on. Our goal is to seek better knowledge, and develop a more comprehensive surveillance system as a critical first step toward staying ahead of the threats in a world that continues to grow more connected by the second," says Dr. Brown.
According to the report, globalization has resulted in many international trade practices that transcend geographical barriers, putting live animals and pathogens and local consumers closer together than ever.
Another trend that Dr. Brown and her colleagues are watching is the increased movement of live, wild animals. In 2007, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service processed 188,000 wildlife shipments and recorded more than 200 million legally imported live wildlife for zoo exhbitions, scientific research, food and products and a growing commercial pet trade. Few of these animals are screened for zoonotic diseases before entering the country and there aren't many regulations in place to monitor them once they've arrived.
"These trends, and others, are eliminating barriers that used to keep pathogens from spreading quickly," continues Dr. Brown. "And as more of these natural barriers disappear, and the world becomes increasingly smaller, you can expect to see more unusual diseases."
For more on emerging diseases, go to www.acvp.org.
Courtesy of ARAcontent
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