Zoonoses: Avoiding pandemics and more

WORLD ZOONOSES DAY

Dr. Pallabi Thakuria

(Feedback can be sent to pallabi.thakuria@gmail.com)

The coronavirus pandemic has changed the global scenario to a great extent, with the world still coming to terms with pre-pandemic and post-pandemic lifestyle differences. Masks, sanitizers, social distancing, avoiding gatherings have all become an indispensable part of our lives, ignoring which might push us towards dire consequences. According to current theories, SARS-CoV-2 virus is thought to have transmitted from bats, thus indicating a zoonotic origin. Speaking of the term 'zoonotic', which holds quite an important place in the healthcare and scientific community, the question arises if the term is equally significant among the less privileged section of the society whose sole concern is to make daily ends meet. The 'World Zoonoses Day' every year on July 6th reminds us of the possible dangers associated with zoonotic diseases, more so from the fact that through steady deforestation we bring ourselves face to face with impending emerging and re-emerging diseases.

Some of the recent zoonotic diseases like Ebola, MERS-CoV, SARS, Nipah, Swine flu have created quite a stir amongst the human population and most of the diseases cannot be prevented by vaccination till date. Yet, other important zoonotic diseases like Rabies, Japanese encephalitis, Salmonellosis, Tuberculosis, Brucellosis etc, despite being preventable, affects the human population hugely. According to the National Institutes of Health, almost 16 per cent of all deaths worldwide can be attributed to infectious diseases, and zoonoses account for 60 per cent of known infectious diseases and 75 per cent of emerging infectious diseases. The infectious agents of the diseases which may either be bacteria, virus, fungi or parasites, may be transmitted by different ways like direct contact with contaminated secretions or excretions, insect or animal bites, through contaminated food or water or through aerosol route.

According to a report by International Livestock Research, 13 zoonotic diseases including T.B, hepatitis E, anthrax etc affect around 2.4 billion people and cause around 2.2 million deaths globally every year and most of the burnt is borne by the low and middle income nations. As per the report, India also bears the burden of these diseases, which affect the livestock of farmers greatly. In fact, India is considered a global hotspot at increased risk for emergence of zoonotic diseases. Naming a few of the zoonotic diseases like brucellosis, Japanese encephalitis, listeriosis, leptospirosis which encompass different regions like Haryana, Goa, Assam, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Delhi etc, the list goes on. The Kyasanur Forest Disease (KFD), which originated in Kyasanur district of India in Karnataka, thought to be restricted to some parts of Karnataka only, have recently been reported form Goa, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, thus indicating spread of the disease to other parts. Rabies- another deadly yet preventable disease is of concern to India, as India accounts for almost 36% of global rabies death. Although preventable, Japanese encephalitis has almost claimed more than 100 lives in Assam last year. Recently, the West Nile fever has been found to be a causative factor for acute encephalitis in Assam in areas where there is occurrence of JE. There are also recent reports of presence of Nipah virus RNA in a few bats of Dhubri district, suggesting possible future occurrence of the disease. Because of the boundaries it shares, Assam has a great risk of acquiring trans-boundary diseases easily from countries like Myanmar, Bhutan, China etc, which has recently been seen in the case of African Swine Fever cases in pigs.

The importance of zoonotic diseases should not only be confined to literature or the scientific community and people should make themselves aware of the potential dangers of zoonoses. The marginal farmers or livestock owners, dwelling nearby forest areas often depend on some forest resources for their survival, thereby risking potential transmission of zoonotic diseases like KFD and scrub typhus. With an estimated street dog population of about 35 million, many street dwellers, especially children become easy targets of rabid dogs, many of such cases going unreported. Persons associated with animals directly such as the animal handlers, veterinarians are at great risk for acquiring diseases like anthrax, Hepatitis E, T.B, rabies, brucellosis and most of the zoonotic diseases. At a time when UN, FAO, WHO, OIE, GARC and other international organizations are working together to create a better tomorrow for us, we need to support them as much as possible. Teams comprising veterinarians, epidemiologists, public health advisors, microbiologists, health care workers, farmers, livestock owners, environmentalists and other needed sectors will pave the way for better dealing with these kinds of crisis. Early warning systems, trained field workers and a conscious public would help contain zoonotic diseases to a great extent. A massive awareness of the possible preventive and therapeutic measures against the common zoonotic diseases needs to be created amongst the masses. It is then people will come forward for taking vaccination against Japanese encephalitis or wash their dog bite wounds immediately with soap and go for post-bite vaccination against rabies or handle excreta of cats with caution to prevent toxoplasmosis (more common in pregnant women leading to possible abortion) or take precaution while dealing with date palm sap to prevent Nipah virus infection or take care to avoid aerosol transmission when suffering from T.B or the recent Covid-19 or maybe take extreme precaution while dealing with forest areas to avoid bringing out any dormant disease through ticks or other insects.

Most of the zoonotic diseases are preventable either by vaccination or through protective measures and all we need to do is to be alert and take precaution. On this World Zoonoses Day, we should join our hands together to protect the environment, mankind, flora and fauna and avoid future pandemics.