GARCnewsletter26

8/2/2019 GARCnewsletter26

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The Alliance is a registered charity in the UK and a 501(c)(3) organization in the US www.rabiescontrol.net p1

Editorial

AfroREB and WRD..................1-2

WRD 2012 .................................3

Bohol Project wins Award..........3

WRD celebrates 5 Years! ...........4

FAO Video of WRD...................4

Funding forNTDs.......................5

Canine Blueprint Update............5

Rabies in Trinidad ...................... 6

Goodbye to NTVs......................7

Rabies in Sao Paulo .................. 8

Upcoming Conferences ............. 8

FEBRUARY 2012 Issue 26

NEwsfrom GarC aNd wrd

TherecentpressreleasethattheBill&MelindaGatesFoundaonandtheircollaboratorswillinvest785million

dollarsinneglectedtropicaldiseaseswaswelcomenewsformanylivingatdailyriskofdyingfrominfeconsthat

couldbecontrolled.SincesomanyofthefocalNTDsthattheGatesFoundaonwilltackleaectthesamegeographic

areasasdogmediatedrabies,itwouldseemmostproducvetotrytointegratesomeofthebasiccomponentsof

rabiesdiseasecontrolprogramsifatallpossible,forexample,improvingrabiesprevenoneducaonasastart.

Ifweareinterestedinsupporngsustainableprograms,theninvolvingthecommuniesiscricalandeducang

thepeoplelivinginthosecommuniesisarststep.Sustainablerabiescontrolprogramsarepossibleashasbeenproveninvariousplacesthroughouttheworldwhentheaectedcommuniesarethebackboneoftheiniave

todecreasehumanrabiesdeaths.TheAlllianceisproudoftherecognionthattheBoholcommunityreceived

earlythisyearwhenPresidentBenignoAquinoIIIofthePhilippinespersonallyhonoredthemasarecipientofthe

2011naonalGalingPookawardfortheirachievementsrelatedtothesustainablerabiesprevenonandcontrol

program.Boholconnuestobeasuccessduetotheinvolvementofthelocalcommuniesthroughouttheprovince,

thestrongleadershipofDrLapiz,theprovincialveterinarian,policalsupportofGovernorChao,internaonal

supportfromvariouspartnersincludingtheAllianceandtheUBSOpmusFoundaon.Oneofthemostimportant

takehomemessagesregardingtheBoholprojectisthateliminanghumanrabiesdeathsrequiresanintegrated

approachinvolvingmanycommunitypublichealthcomponentsincludingboththehumanandanimalsidebut

italsoinvolvesotherenesofpublichealthincludingastronglegalframework,educaonalexperts,sanitaon

controletc.Lastly,itiscricaltounderstandthatcommuniesmayusedierentapproachestoimplemenng

humanerabiescontrolstrategiesassomeofthecomponentsthatworkinoneregionwillnotworkinanother.

However,involvingthelocalcommunityiscricalasitisthepeoplelivinglocallythathavethebestunderstanding

ofwhatisgoingonintheirowncommuniesandhavethemosttogainorloseifrabiesisnotcontrolled.

Deborah J Briggs, Execuve Director Global Alliance for Rabies Control

2011 World Rabies DayA signicant involvement of AfroREB network experts

AfroREB, a network of rabies experts from 14 French speaking

countriesoftheAfricanconnenthassettwogoals;increasingpublic

ocialsandhealthinstuonsawarenessofrabies;andenhancing

healthprofessionalsandpaentsknowledgetoensurebeeraccess

topropercarefollowingrabiesexposure.

The2011WorldRabiesDayprovidedtheopportunitytomobilize

network members in partnership with local health ministries, to

undertake acons in several countries inNorth,West and Central

Africa.TheseeventsshowcasedtheprominentrolethatAfroREBnow

playsintheghtagainstrabiesontheAfricanconnent.Themedia

playedasignicantrolebyrelayingtheawarenessmessagestothebroaderpopulaon.

Aspartoftheiniave,arabiesawarenesswalkwasorganizedbythelocalAfroREBrepresentaveandhealth

ocialsofBeninthroughthestreetsofCotonouonSeptember28.Manyhealthprofessionalswerepresent.Connued on page 2...

Awareness March in the streets of Cotonou
http://www.rabiescontrol.net/http://www.galingpook.org/main/images/stories/replikit/2011galingpookwinners.pdfhttp://www.galingpook.org/main/images/stories/replikit/2011galingpookwinners.pdfhttp://www.galingpook.org/main/images/stories/replikit/2011galingpookwinners.pdfhttp://www.rabiescontrol.net/http://www.galingpook.org/main/images/stories/replikit/2011galingpookwinners.pdf


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Parcipaon was equally strong in Burkina-Faso where 300 people (including physicians, paramedics,

veterinarians)tookpartinaceremonyinOuagadougouonSeptember28.Theceremony,jointlychairedbythe

General Managers of Health and Veterinary

Services, gave Dr. Thiombano (AfroREB) the

opportunitytogiveanoverviewofthestatusof

rabies inhiscountry. Histalkwassignicantly

pickedupbythemedia. A meeng was held with journalists on

September28inYaound,Cameroun,chairedby

Dr. TejiokemMathurin (AfroREBmember) and

Dr. Besong Laura (veterinarian). Furthermore,

on September 21there was both an open

conferenceattheCentrePasteurduCameroun

and a showonnaonalradio to further speak

aboutrabies.

IntheIvoryCoast,apressconferencewasheld

bylocalAfroREBexperts(Pr.TiembreIssiakaandDr.AdjogouaValry)atInstutPasteurdAbidjan,inpartnership

withtheNaonalInstuteofPublicHygiene.Asubsidizedpre-exposurevaccinaoncampaigncarriedoutbythe

NaonalInstuteofPublicHygieneforat-riskpopulaonswaslaunchedfortheoccasionandlastedunlmid-

November.

InTogo,thehighlightoftheSeptember28thdaywasfreevaccinaonofdogsandapressconferenceaended

bythreeministers.JournalistsweregiventrainingonrabiesbyAfroREBrepresentaves(Dr.BabaBibianeandDr.

IhouWatebaMajest)andbytwoveterinarians(Dr.PeweKoandDr.PatoPidemnwSteed).Furthermore,19

Togoleseprintmediajournalistsweremadeawareofthedangers

ofrabiesaswellastheircrucialroleinraisingpublicawareness.

InGabon,communicaon to increaseawarenessamongthe

generalpublicwasaccomplishedbyatextmessagesentto5000

subscribersonWorldRabiesDay. InSenegal,priortoWorldRabiesDay,andontheiniaveof

Pr.BernardDiop(AfroREB),atrainingworkshopwasorganizedin

SallyfromAugust8th-13thworkingtowardsbuildinganAn-Rabies

Treatmentcenter(ARTC)ineachofthe14regionsofSenegal.

In Algeria, a conference daywasorganized in Tiaret by the

MinistryofHealth,PopulaonandHospitalReformswiththehelp

of the Algerian representaon of Instut Pasteur, the Naonal

Instute of Public Health and the acve parcipaon of Drs

AbderrezakSouandMouradIssad(AfroREB).Lectureswereheld

onan-rabiesvaccines,thecoldchainandthemanagementofpeopleexposedtorabies. WorldRabiesDaywascelebratedfortherstmeinMadagascarwithafocusoncommunityawareness.A

ceremonywasorganizedattheMadagascar representaonof InstutPasteur,withthecollaboraonof three

ministries:PublicHealth,AnimalHusbandryandCommunicaon.Thatday,relayedbythemedia,communicaon

bannerswerehungattheMadagascanInstutPasteurandattheMinistryofPublicHealth.Therewasalsoa

seriesoflecturesbyrabiesexperts,namelyDr.EmilieFaraIIRamahefalalaoandDr.WilliamRakotomalala(AfroREB

members).Anotherhighlightwastheopeningofanewan-rabiestreatmentcenterinanisolateddistrictlocated

farfromthecapital.

Finally,severalmembersgavetheirrespecvehealthocials(medicalandveterinary),aformalleerurging

themtoacknowledgerabiesasoneofpublichealthprioriesinordertoputinplaceeecveresponsesand

facilitatetheaccessofpeopleexposedtorabiestotreatmentsthatcansavetheirlives.

Submied by the members ofAfroREB. AfroREB is a network of rabies experts from 14 French speaking countries of the African connent (Algeria, Benin,

Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Congo, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Madagascar, Mali, Morocco, Niger, The Central African Republic, Senegal, Togo). AfroREB has been

holding regular meengs since 2008 to work on projects to be launched on the African connent, exchange clinical and public health experiences, and

issue recommendaons.

...AfroREB connued from page 1.

Meeng with journalists at Centre Pasteur in Yaounde

Press conference at Instut Pasteur in Abidjan
http://www.rabiescontrol.net/http://www.rabiescontrol.net/http://www.afroreb.info/http://www.afroreb.info/http://www.afroreb.info/http://www.rabiescontrol.net/http://www.afroreb.info/


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Worl d Rabies Day 2012

Recent surveydata indicang thatWRD2011eventsspannedacrossasixmonth

meframe conrms that WRD is increasingly becoming a year-round iniave. Of

those surveyed, 2 out of 3 people indicated using social media such as Facebook

(78%),Google+(34%)andYouTube(32%).Toconnuallyengagecommunitymembers

throughout the year, theWRD team isdevelopinga socialmediastrategy aimedat

reaching new audiences, building new relaonships, growing visibility and furtherincreasingmomentum.

TheWRD team is alsoworkingon several otherprojects to help facilitateacon

throughtheprovisionofeducaonandawarenesstools.First,theWRDwebsitewill

undergoaslightfaceli.BytheendofMarch,anewresourcelibrarywillbereleasedallowingend-userstosearch

for educaonalmaterials throughopenqueries and sorted bycategories such as language,world region and

profession.Thisnewimprovedinterfacewillmakendingeducaonalmaterialsmucheasier.Inaddion,amedia

catalogwillbemadeavailablebymid-AugustcontainingimagesandvideosreceivedfromWRDeventsoverthe

pastveyears.

Second, theWRD teamisdevelopingRabiesCountryProles; envisionedto serveas theone-stop-shop for

comprehensivecountry-specicinformaonaboutrabies.Examplesofinformaontobeincludedaredemographics,

mortalitydata,andphysicallocaonsforpost-exposureprophylaxis.Inaddiontopre-exisngrecords,theWRD

teamwillgarnernewdatafromcountryexperts,keystakeholdersandresearchcurrentlyunderwayincludingthe

GlobalBurdenRe-AssessmentandHumanRabiesNoabilitystudies.Therstcountryproleisexpectedtobe

releasedbymid-June.

Lastly,theWRDteamisworkingondevelopingaWebinarseriesfor2012.Thisopen-sourceplaormforrabies

educaonisacrowd-favoriteamongsttheWRDcommunityandwedliketohostmoreWebinarsinmorelanguages

andfocusonspecictopicspreviouslyrequestedbyourglobalcommunitysuchasrabiesinhumans,livestock

andbatsanddiscussionsonnewbiologicsandeld-baseddiagnosctesngprocedures.Ifyouhaveideasfora

WebinarinyourcountryorwouldliketoshareeducaonalresourcesorphotosfromyourcountryontheWRD

website,pleasecontactus.

Wearelookingforwardtoprovidingupdatesthroughouttheyear.FormoreinformaonabouttheWorldRabiesDayCampaignpleasecontactpeter.costa@worldrabiesday.org.Contributed by Peter Costa and Mylissia Stukey of the World Rabies Day team

Bohol Rabies Prevent ion and El iminat ion Pro ject w ins Gal ing Pook

InDecemberGARClearnedthatourprojectinBohol

hadbeengiventhepresgiousGalingPookaward.

This award is presented by the President of the

Philippines and every year recognizes 10 local

governanceprojectsforexcellence.Boholisoneisland

of1.3millionpeople,inanaonofover7000islands

and94millionpeople.Thereishugecompeonfor

theGalingPook.

Following this award, the projectwill be held up

asanexample for other communies toemulate in

their rabies control. It is powerful endorsement of

theprojectmodelandastepforwardinglobalrabies

control.

Thankyou to theGaling PookFoundaonand to

everyonewhohasworkedandconnuestoworkon

thisproject. ReadourBoholprojectreporthereandseethefull

2011GalingPookawardwinnersbrochurehere.
http://www.rabiescontrol.net/http://www.rabiescontrol.net/what-we-do/project-reports.htmlhttp://www.rabiescontrol.net/what-we-do/project-reports.htmlhttp://www.rabiescontrol.net/what-we-do/project-reports.htmlhttp://www.galingpook.org/main/images/stories/replikit/2011galingpookwinners.pdfhttp://www.galingpook.org/main/images/stories/replikit/2011galingpookwinners.pdfhttp://www.galingpook.org/main/images/stories/replikit/2011galingpookwinners.pdfhttp://www.rabiescontrol.net/http://www.galingpook.org/main/images/stories/replikit/2011galingpookwinners.pdfhttp://www.rabiescontrol.net/what-we-do/project-reports.html


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Worl d Rabies Day Celebrat es 5 year s!

September28,2011markedtheveyearanniversary

of the World Rabies Day Campaign; the single largest

concerted eort to raise global awareness about rabies

anditsprevenon.RecentlytheWRDteamadministered

a survey in four languages to evaluate the 2011 eort

and guide planning for the 2012 campaign. Over 500surveyswerereturnedandanalyzed,providingawealth

ofknowledgeaboutthe2011campaignandsuggesons

onhowtoimprovevariousaspectsoftheWRDcampaign.

The top5 requestsforWRD2012weremorewebinars,

morematerials,more videos and photos,more vaccine

andmorefunding.Thankyoutoeveryonewhoresponded

totheWRDsurvey.

Aroundtheworld860individualeventswerereported

from115 countries helping to educatemore than 32.7

millionpeople.Thiswasaccomplishedprimarilythrough

massmedia includingtelevisionbroadcasts,radio shows

andnewspaper arclesaswellasconferencesandseminars, school-basededucaonandoutreachprograms,

parades,concerts,funrunsandwalks,dogshowsandanimaladopt-a-thons.Animalwellnessclinics,including

workshopsforlivestock,heldinconjunconwithWRD2011resulted

in3.1millionvaccinatons and 337,459 microchip implants. These

programsweresuccessfullycarriedout at animal hospitals, humane

organizaons,veterinarycolleges,community, office and field-based

venuesallovertheworld.

Sincetheinauguralcampaignin2007,rabiesvaccinaonclinics

heldforWRDhavehelpedprotectanesmated7.7millionanimals

and the totalnumber ofpeople esmatedtohave beeneducatedthroughWRDfrom2007-2011hasnowreached182million.These

remarkablefeatswouldnotbepossiblewithoutthesupportofour

global community and theWorld Rabies Day team would like to

genuinelythankallourfollowers,advocates,sponsorsandoutreach

partnersthathavesupportedthecampaignsince2007.Yourleadership

andwillingnesstoinnovatehavebuiltalasngfoundaonforfuture

successfulandsustainablerabiescontrolprograms.Wehopeyouwill

connuetosupportoureortsintothefutureasweexplorenewandnovelwaysofraisingevenmoreawareness

toensurethatgovernments,policymakersandkeyopinionleaderscannolongerneglectrabies.

Children proudly display their rabies prevenon posters during WRD2011 events in Ayacucho, Peru.

Photo: Sandra Mariela Aquije Alvarez.

Stray dogs in Dharamsala, India being vaccinated andmarked with red paint during WRD 2011.Photo: Arvind Sharma

WRD video fro m FAO

AvideoofWRD2010eventsinSierraLeonemadebythe

FoodandAgricultureOrganizaonoftheUnitedNaons(FAO)

isavailableonYouTube.IttellsthestoryofSierraLeoneans

enormouseorts toght rabies intheirown communies,

withthehelpofFAOandUSCentersforDiseaseControland

Prevenon.

It showseducaonal acvies held tomarkWRD, songs

developedtoraiseawarenessaboutrabiesandtalksaboutthe

AnimalHealthClubprogramwhicheducatesschoolchildrenaboutrabiesandhowtocarefordogs.Italsofeaturesverymovi nginterviewswiththefamiliesofchildrenwho

havediedbecauseofrabies.Thevideoisavailablein a long and a shortversioninEnglish,and inlong and short

versionswithsubtlesinFrench.
http://www.rabiescontrol.net/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGS3s0Mw590&feature=mfu_in_order&list=ULhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFvVfUD9x1k&feature=BFa&list=ULyGS3s0Mw590&lf=mfu_in_orderhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtUQ3wcqnY0&feature=BFa&list=ULyGS3s0Mw590&lf=mfu_in_orderhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LHbyr-eHfkMhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LHbyr-eHfkMhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LHbyr-eHfkMhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGS3s0Mw590&feature=mfu_in_order&list=ULhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGS3s0Mw590&feature=mfu_in_order&list=ULhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGS3s0Mw590&feature=mfu_in_order&list=ULhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFvVfUD9x1k&feature=BFa&list=ULyGS3s0Mw590&lf=mfu_in_orderhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFvVfUD9x1k&feature=BFa&list=ULyGS3s0Mw590&lf=mfu_in_orderhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFvVfUD9x1k&feature=BFa&list=ULyGS3s0Mw590&lf=mfu_in_orderhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtUQ3wcqnY0&feature=BFa&list=ULyGS3s0Mw590&lf=mfu_in_orderhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtUQ3wcqnY0&feature=BFa&list=ULyGS3s0Mw590&lf=mfu_in_orderhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtUQ3wcqnY0&feature=BFa&list=ULyGS3s0Mw590&lf=mfu_in_orderhttp://www.rabiescontrol.net/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtUQ3wcqnY0&feature=BFa&list=ULyGS3s0Mw590&lf=mfu_in_orderhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFvVfUD9x1k&feature=BFa&list=ULyGS3s0Mw590&lf=mfu_in_orderhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGS3s0Mw590&feature=mfu_in_order&list=ULhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LHbyr-eHfkM


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NEwsfromthE CommuNity

The Alliance is a registered charity in the UK and a 501(c)(3) organizat ion in the US www.rabiescontrol.net p5


Major Col laborat ion and Funding for Neglec ted Tropica l D iseases

OnJanuary30th,ameengwasheldattheRoyalCollegeofPhysicians

nLondon,UKentledUningtocombatNeglectedTropicalDiseases.

EndingtheNeglectandReaching2020Goals.

Coordinated by the UK Coalion against NTD and the GatesFoundaon,Thirteenmajor pharmaceucalcompanies, government

groups and health charies, including the Gates Foundaon,

announcedajointeorttotackle10neglectedtropicaldiseases(NTDs)

nacoordinatedfashion.Today,wehavejoinedtogethertoincrease

theimpactofourinvestmentsandbuildonthetremendousprogress

madetodate,BillGatessaidinastatement,addingthatimproving

peopleshealthwouldhelpthembecomeself-sucient.

It is the largest coordinated eort ever to combat NTDs. The

governmentgroupsandchariesalonearecommingjustover$785

million in new funding. The pharmaceucal companies will donatebillionsofdosesof treatments, share researchwork,and access to

patenteddrugcompounds.

TheeortaimstomeetthegoalsoftheWorldHealthOrganizaons

roadmapfor controlling neglected tropical diseasesby2020,which

targets 17 infecons and condions for renewed control eorts .

The10 diseases selected by thismeeng include dracunculiasis, leprosy, onchocerciasis, schistosomiasis and

trypanosomiasis.Theseancientdiseasesarenowbeingbroughttotheirkneeswithstunningspeed,saidDr.

MargaretChan,theWHOsdirector-general.

FrancoisMeslin,LeaderoftheNeglectedZoonocDiseases(NZD)teamatWHOadded;Thankstothelevelof

aenontheinternaonalfundingcommunityisnowpayingtothem,classicalNTDswillnotremainneglected

forverymuchlonger.Somearetargetedforglobalorregionaleliminaonassoonasby2015.Thereistherefore

abeerchancetoseetheNZDs,includinghumandogmediatedrabies,replacingtheformerNTDssoonand

hopefullyreceivingthesamelevelofaenonandfunding.

Summarised by Louise Taylor from arcles in the Hungton Post, theMedical News Today, andemails with WHO.The 10 diseases selected at the meeng

are: Blinding trachoma, Chagas disease, Guinea worm disease, Le prosy, Lymphac lariasis, River blindness, Schistosomiasis, Sleeping sickness, Soil-

ransmied helminthes, Visceral leishmaniasis.

New development s for the Canine Rabies B luepr in t

TheBlueprint forCanine Rabies PrevenonandControl is

nowavailableonlineinPortuguese,ArabicandRussian,aswell

astheoriginalEnglishandFrenchversions.ItwillalsoshortlybeavailableinSpanish.Thetranslaonscanbefoundbyclicking

onthetabsintheupperrightcornerofthehomepage,www.

rabiesblueprint.com.TheBlueprintbringstogetherallofthe

praccal advice and resources necessary for rabies control

workerstoimplementeecvecontrolstrategiesintheirareas,

andwehopethatbytranslangthesetools,theirimpactwillbe

allthegreateraroundtheworld.

AnewpublicaonontheBlueprint,entledTheBlueprint

forRabiesPrevenonandControl:ANovelOperaonalToolkit

forRabiesEliminaonwrienbyDrTizianaLemboofGlasgowUniversityonbehalfofthePartnersforRabiesPrevenonhasalsobeenpublishedinthejournal PloSNeglected

TropicalDiseases.Thisdescribestheraonaleforitsdevelopmentaswellasanoverviewofwhatitcontains,and

shouldgivethetoolkitevengreatervisibilitywithintheglobalrabiescommunity.
http://www.rabiescontrol.net/http://whqlibdoc.who.int/hq/2012/WHO_HTM_NTD_2012.1_eng.pdfhttp://whqlibdoc.who.int/hq/2012/WHO_HTM_NTD_2012.1_eng.pdfhttp://whqlibdoc.who.int/hq/2012/WHO_HTM_NTD_2012.1_eng.pdfhttp://whqlibdoc.who.int/hq/2012/WHO_HTM_NTD_2012.1_eng.pdfhttp://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/240980.phphttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/30/gates-foundation-eliminate-tropical-disease-effort_n_1242491.htmlhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/30/gates-foundation-eliminate-tropical-disease-effort_n_1242491.htmlhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/30/gates-foundation-eliminate-tropical-disease-effort_n_1242491.htmlhttp://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/240980.phphttp://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/240980.phphttp://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/240980.phphttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/30/gates-foundation-eliminate-tropical-disease-effort_n_1242491.htmlhttp://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/240980.phphttp://www.rabiesblueprint.com/http://www.rabiesblueprint.com/http://www.rabiesblueprint.com/http://www.rabiesblueprint.com/http://www.rabiesblueprint.com/http://www.plosntds.org/home.actionhttp://www.plosntds.org/home.actionhttp://www.plosntds.org/home.actionhttp://www.plosntds.org/home.actionhttp://www.plosntds.org/home.actionhttp://www.rabiescontrol.net/http://www.plosntds.org/home.actionhttp://www.plosntds.org/home.actionhttp://www.rabiesblueprint.com/http://www.rabiesblueprint.com/http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/240980.phphttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/30/gates-foundation-eliminate-tropical-disease-effort_n_1242491.htmlhttp://whqlibdoc.who.int/hq/2012/WHO_HTM_NTD_2012.1_eng.pdfhttp://whqlibdoc.who.int/hq/2012/WHO_HTM_NTD_2012.1_eng.pdf


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Rabies in Tr in idad: Past a nd Present Perspec t ives

TheCaribbeanislandofTrinidadliesjustothenortheastcoastofVenezuela,andhasadeeprootedhistoryofrabies.Caninetransmiedrabieswaseradicatedfromtheislandintheearly20thcenturywiththelastreportedanimalcaseoccurringin1914.However,in1931paralycrabiestransmiedbyabatvectorwasrstsciencallyrecognizedontheisland,bylocalresearchersDr.JosephL.PawanandCaptainH.V.Mevier.Thisnewlyrecognizedformofrabieswassaidtohavebeenspreadbythebiteofthehematophagousbat(Desmodusroutundus),whenitfedonanimalhosts.Recentmolecularevidencehasconrmedthatthisspeciesisindeedassociatedwithrabiesvariantsfoundon

theisland.Interesngly,Tobago,thesisterislandofTrinidad,remains,todate,bothvampire-freeandparalycrabies-free.Trinidadianfolkloredescribesacharacter,akintothevampirebat,calledtheSoucouyantthatiesatnightinsearchofhumanblood,andCarnivalcostumesdepictbatssovividlythatthespeciescanoenbeelucidated. TherstandprobablylargestbattransmiedhumanrabiesoutbreakoccurredinTrinidadfrom1929to1937,withrecordsof89humanssuccumbingtothediseasewith73conrmedcases.Sincethen,sporadicoutbreaksofparalycrabieshaveoccurredinlivestock,predominantlybovines,andthediseasesllholdsanauraofmysteryandawe.Todate,boththeAgricultureandHealthMinistriesareinvolvedinthecaseinvesgaonproceduretoascertainriskoftransmissiontohumansfromanimals.Thismul-agencyapproachhasbeeninplacesincethe1930sandeecvelyillustratestheOneHealthConcept. Duringtherstrecognizedoutbreak,aprophylaccanimalvaccinaonstrategy was adopted, that focused on the local bovine populaon.

Currently,thegovernmentveterinaryservicesrounelyexecuteanannualvaccinaonprograminwhichallhealthycale,bisonanddonkeysofaminimumageareimmunizedagainst rabiesbyprimaryinoculaonandroune boosters with an inacvated virus formulaon. It is presentlylegislated, under the Paralyc Rabies Regulaons (1956) of TrinidadandTobagothatduringtheannualprogram,unvaccinatedanimalsandanimalsdueforboostervaccinaonsmustbepresentedtotheinspectorforvaccinaon.Failuretodosoisconsideredanoenseandthefarmerisliabletoapenaltyfee. AvampirebatcontrolprogramisalsoimplementedbytheAn-RabiesUnit(ARU)oftheLocalAgricultureMinistry,butwasconceptualizedundertheDepartmentofHealth.TheARUconductsisland-widebatroostsurveillanceandsubsequently trapsthevampirebats for theadministraonofavampiricide(chemical control)and submissionof

specimensforrabiestesng.Theunitalsoinvesgatesbatbingcomplaintsinbothanimalsandhumans,assistswithrabiesvaccinaonandfacilitatespubliceducaonaboutrabies. In2010,WorldRabiesDay(WRD)wascommemoratedfortherstmeinTrinidadwithaWRDExhibion.This

inaugural event honoured the day by displaying posters, videos andspecimens related to the disease and the bat vector, together withthe distribuon of educaonal material. The event was aendedby farmers, public health ocials, medical ocers, animal healthpersonnel,representavesofinternaonalagenciesandterarylevelstudents.Themomentumwasconnuedin2011withthehosngofaRabiesAwarenessSeminar,heldinthecountyofSt.Patrickwhere,thersthumanrabiescasewasrecognizedandthediseasesllhasa

notablepresence.Thetargetaudiencewasmainlylocalfarmers,whoaretherstpointofcontactwithdiseasedanimalsandwithwhomlaystheresponsibilityforrepornganimalsuspectstotheLocalVeterinaryAuthority.Theywerethusadvisedonthelocalhistoryofrabies,diseaseeology,transmissionandclinicalsigns,publichealthrisks,prevenonandcontrolmeasures includingtheimportanceof animalvaccinaonandthelegislatedrequirementsforsuchvaccinaon.Overtheyears,rabiespubliceducaonaliniaveshaveservedwellto

supplementthecontrolandprevenonofthediseasebyvectorcontrolandvaccinaonmeasures.Suchiniaveshavebeenlinkedtoreduconsinrabiescases,aswellasincreasedreporngofsuspectanimals.Theoveralleecthasbeenareduconintheriskofdiseasetransmissiontobothanimalsandhumans.WorldRabiesDayiniavesprovetobe

opportuneeventstorefreshtheknowledgeofthepopulaononboththetragicandtriumphanthistoryofthediseaseontheislandandcelebrateover70yearswithoutahumanrabiescaseontheisland.

Contributed by Dr. Janine Seetahal [DVM, MPH]. Janine is currently working as a Veterinary Ocer at the Veterinary Diagnosc Laboratory, Ministry of

Food Producon, Land and Marine Aairs, Trinidad and Tobago.

Bovine displaying signs of paralyc rabies,subsequently conrmed by DFA tesng.

Sta of the Veterinary Diagnosc Laboratory at theinaugural WRD Event in 2010 at the Caroni SwampVisitor Centre
http://www.rabiescontrol.net/http://www.rabiescontrol.net/http://www.rabiescontrol.net/


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When w e w i l l say good bye to the c entur y o ld rab ies vacc ine o f nerve

t issue or ig in?

SirDavidSempledevelopedsheep-brainvaccineforhumanusein1911inIndia.Sincethen,technological

advanceshaveproducedlessreactogenicnerve-ssuevaccine(NTV)suchassucklingmousebrainvaccine.This

historicalvaccineserveditspurposeforalmost100yearswhentherewasnobeerandaordabletechnology

forrabiesendemiccountries.However,ssue-culturetechnologydevelopedafewdecadesagohascompletelyrevoluonalized vaccine producon and

changedtheconceptofbiologicaltesng.There

isnowa globalconsensus tominimizetheuse

of laboratory animals for biological research

andbiologicaltesngandtofollowstrictethical

procedures for unavoidable use of laboratory

animals.TheWorldHealthOrganizaon(WHO)

alsostronglyrecommendsdisconnuaonofthe

oldnervessuevaccinesbecausethesevaccines

haveahighrateofadversereaconsandlowerecacy.Itisunethicaltouseinnocentanimals

for producon of tradional rabies vaccine

using century old technology in the name of

humanwelfarewhenssue-culturetechnology

is available and cost-eecve rabies vaccine

techniquehasbeendevelopedasanalternave.

Nerve-ssuevaccinehasalsobeenproduced

for dog immunizaon and post-exposure

vaccinaon of foodand companion animals in

manycountriesinthepastbutithasbeenphasedoutduetoeconomicandtechnicalreasonsinmostrabies

endemiccountries.

FollowingtheWHOrecommendaonin1984toreplaceNTVs,manyAsiancountrieshavedisconnuedthe

produconanduseofnerve-ssuevaccines forhumanuse.In 2004,theWHOExpertConsultaon issued a

denivestatementtotheeectthatNTVsshouldbedisconnuedandthatonlyrabiesvaccineofssue-culture

originorembryonatedeggoriginshouldbeusedinhumans.MostrabiesendemicAsiancountrieshavephasedout

produconanduseofNTVoverlast20years,namelyChina(1990),Thailand(1992),SriLanka(1995),Indonesia

(1996),Philippines(1997),LaoPDR(2005),Cambodia(2005),India(2005),Nepal(2006),Vietnam(2007)and

mostrecentlyBangladesh(2011).

PakistanhasagreedinprincipletoendNTVproduconby2012,butanalternavesuchasthebulkpurchase

ofconcentratedrabiesvaccineremainstobeworkedout.InMyanmar,humanrabiesvaccineisproducedbythe

MyanmarPharmaceucalCompanybutthebuyeristheMinistryofHealth.Thesituaonneedsadvocacyandan

alternavesoluontoreducethecostofvaccinaon.

Due to the costofproduconand strict internaonalquality control requirements,most rabiesendemic

countriesarenotcurrentlyproducingtheirownhumanrabiesvaccines.However,themulsiteIntradermal(I/D)

vaccinaonscheduleisacost-eecve,sciencallyprovenandWHOrecommendedvaccinaonschedule.Itis

widelypraccedinThailand,SriLanka,thePhilippines,IndiaandBangladesh.WHOisencouragingrabiesendemic

countries tointroduce thiscost-eecverabiesvaccinaonscheduletoimproveavailability,aordabilityand

accessibilityofmodernrabiesvaccine.Economicpost-exposurerabiesprophylaxisusingtheintradermalrouteis

aviablealternaveforNTVdeliveredbythepublicsectorinrabiesendemiccountries.

Contributed by Dr Gyanendra Gongal, Scienst, Disease Surveillance and Epidemiology, WHO Regional Oce for South East Asia, New Delhi

Sheep brain vaccine producon chain(Photo: Dr. JN Rai, Nepal)
http://www.rabiescontrol.net/http://www.rabiescontrol.net/


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The editor of the Alliance newsletter is Louise Taylor and typesetting is by Pete Else. If you have news items or information about rabies,please contact her at [email protected]. For further information on the Alliances work seewww.rabiescontrol.net .

Upcom ing Conferences

The15thInternaonalCongressonInfecousDiseases(ICID)willbeheldinBangkok,ThailandonJune13-16,

2012.Furtherdetailscanbefoundathp://www.isid.org/icid/welcome.shtml.

The2012RabiesInTheAmericas(RITAXXIII)meengwillbeheldinSoPaulo,Brazil,October14-19,2012.The

websiteisunderdevelopment.

So Paulo has a case of an imal ra b ies af ter 30 years

Aer30yearswithnodetectedcases

of terrestrial animal rabies, rabies has

returned to So Paulo state, Brazil. In

December2011,acatwithrabiesviruswas

diagnosed and conrmed by the college

of veterinarymedicine, University of Sao

Paulo.Thecatlivedinthesoutherncityof

SaoPaulo,nearapark,wasnotvaccinated,

andwasprobablyinfectedbyabat.Rabies-

infectedbatsoencannotyaway.Cats,

like the one in this case,may chasebats

thatarenotabletoyduetobeinginfected

withrabies,andgetbienbyabattrying

todefenditself.

Following several adverse reaconsto a rabies vaccine administered to dogs

and cats (including some fatalies),

the government of Sao Paulo decided

to suspend the free rabies vaccinaon

program for pets in2010.More recently,

the Ministry of Health has suspended

vaccinaonofpetsin15Brazilianstates,whichhavealsonotrecordedrabiescasesoccurrencesofthediseasein

recentyears.

ThediseasehadbeenvirtuallyeliminatedfromSaoPaulo statebyvaccinaon,sothiscase isparcularly

alarming.Aveterinarian,AnaBeatrizdeFaria,believesthatoccasionaladversereaconstothevaccineshouldnotimpedethecampaign.Itisimportanttorememberthatvaccinesarelife-savingbiologicalsandallvaccines

mayhaveoccasionaladversereacons.

Evenwiththesuspensionofthefreevaccinaoncampaign,manyownersofdogsandcatshavebeenconnuing

toimmunizetheirpets,usingprivateveterinaryclinics.

Portalnewsreportedthatthiscatisbeingtreatedasanisolatedcase,andthatvaccinaonhasbeenconducted

incatsanddogsinthesurroundingarea.Focalvaccinaoncampaignsarerecommendedwhenisolatedcasesare

diagnosedinordertopreventrabiesfromspreadingtootherregions.TheMinistryofHealthhasalsodecidedto

restartvaccinaoncampaignsacrossthewholecountrythisyear,andthestateofSoPaulohasalreadyreceived

thevaccinetobeginthisyearscampaign.

Summarised by Louise Taylor of GARC and Phyllis Romijn, scienc researcher at Pesquisadora PESAGRO-RIO, Brazil from reports by the TV network

RecordandPortalnews.
http://www.rabiescontrol.net/http://www.rabiescontrol.net/http://www.isid.org/icid/welcome.shtmlhttp://www.isid.org/icid/welcome.shtmlhttp://www.isid.org/icid/welcome.shtmlhttp://www.isid.org/icid/welcome.shtmlhttp://www.dirigida.com.br/news/pt_br/sao_paulo_tem_caso_de_raiva_animal_apos_30_anos_r7/redirect_7270688.htmlhttp://www.dirigida.com.br/news/pt_br/sao_paulo_tem_caso_de_raiva_animal_apos_30_anos_r7/redirect_7270688.htmlhttp://www.dirigida.com.br/news/pt_br/sao_paulo_tem_caso_de_raiva_animal_apos_30_anos_r7/redirect_7270688.htmlhttp://www.dirigida.com.br/news/pt_br/sao_paulo_tem_caso_de_raiva_animal_apos_30_anos_r7/redirect_7270688.htmlhttp://www.dirigida.com.br/news/pt_br/sao_paulo_tem_caso_de_raiva_animal_apos_30_anos_r7/redirect_7270688.htmlhttp://www.portalnews.net.br/saude/6033-sao-paulo-registra-morte-de-um-gato-por-virus-da-raiva.htmlhttp://www.portalnews.net.br/saude/6033-sao-paulo-registra-morte-de-um-gato-por-virus-da-raiva.htmlhttp://www.portalnews.net.br/saude/6033-sao-paulo-registra-morte-de-um-gato-por-virus-da-raiva.htmlhttp://www.rabiescontrol.net/http://www.isid.org/icid/welcome.shtmlhttp://www.portalnews.net.br/saude/6033-sao-paulo-registra-morte-de-um-gato-por-virus-da-raiva.htmlhttp://www.dirigida.com.br/news/pt_br/sao_paulo_tem_caso_de_raiva_animal_apos_30_anos_r7/redirect_7270688.htmlhttp://www.dirigida.com.br/news/pt_br/sao_paulo_tem_caso_de_raiva_animal_apos_30_anos_r7/redirect_7270688.htmlhttp://www.rabiescontrol.net/

Documents

GARCnewsletter26