UK: Livestock owner confirmed with bovine TB

[Gert van der Hoek]

Dianne Summers is the founder of the website Alpacatb.com, this website was started to raise awareness on bovine tuberculosis in the UK.

UK: Livestock owner confirmed with bovine TB

11/04/2012 Transmission to Alpaca Owner

Dianne Summers has had confirmation that she has TB m.bovis herself and has begun treatment. Human treatment for TB m.bovis takes nine months and consist of a variety of drugs with some unpleasant side effects - it is not a quick or simple fix. We wish her a full and speedy recovery.

This underlines the reason that TB should be taken so seriously - it is not just your livestock that are at risk. If it is in your herd you, your family and friends can contract TB. TB is a Zoonotic disease - to be clear that means it can be passed on to people. Go to our ‘Why bTB is a Problem’ page for further information.

http://www.alpacatb.com/news.html

thanks to Johann Tasker

See also: Farmers Weekly

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: UK: Livestock owner confirmed with bovine TB

J Clin Microbiol. 2011 May; 49(5): 1943?1950.

Investigating Transmission of Mycobacterium bovis in the United Kingdom in 2005 to 2008

Abstract

Due to an increase in bovine tuberculosis in cattle in the United Kingdom, we investigated the characteristics of Mycobacterium bovis infection in humans and assessed whether extensive transmission of M. bovis between humans has occurred. A cross-sectional study linking demographic, clinical, and DNA fingerprinting (using 15-locus mycobacterial interspersed repetitive-unit?variable-number tandem-repeat [MIRU-VNTR] typing) data on cases reported between 2005 and 2008 was undertaken.

A total of 129 cases of M. bovis infection in humans were reported over the period, with a decrease in annual incidence from 0.065 to 0.047 cases per 100,000 persons. Most patients were born pre-1960, before widespread pasteurization was introduced (73%), were of white ethnicity (83%), and were born in the United Kingdom (76%). A total of 102 patients (79%) had MIRU-VNTR typing data.

A total of 31 of 69 complete MIRU-VNTR profiles formed eight distinct clusters.

The overall clustering proportion determined using the n − 1 method was 33%. The largest cluster, comprising 12 cases, was indistinguishable from a previously reported West Midlands outbreak strain cluster and included those cases. This cluster was heterogeneous, having characteristics supporting recent zoonotic and human-to-human transmission as well as reactivation of latent disease. Seven other, smaller clusters identified had demographics supporting recrudescence rather than recent infection. A total of 33 patients had incomplete MIRU-VNTR profiles, of which 11 may have yielded 2 to 6 further small clusters if typed to completion.

The incidence of M. bovis in humans in the United Kingdom remains low, and the epidemiology is predominantly that of reactivated disease.

There were nine patients born in the United Kingdom after 1960 (when pasteurization became widespread), which may represent recent transmission

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: UK: Livestock owner confirmed with bovine TB

M. bovis TB data by UK country and English region

Enhanced Mycobacterium bovis surveillance data showing case numbers by UK country and English region from 1994 to 2009.


Table 24. Isolates of Mycobacterium bovis from humans by country, UK, 1994-2009

Year--England--N.Ireland--Scotland--Wales--United Kingdom

1994 29 5 13 2 49

1995 17 2 10 3 32

1996 29 4 3 1 37

1997 32 3 11 0 46

1998 24 0 11 5 40

1999 28 4 6 3 41

2000 19 0 10 0 29

2001 24 1 2 6 33

2002 17 0 1 1 19

2003 15 2 4 0 21

2004 14 2 4 1 21

2005 24 7 4 4 39

2006 26 2 5 0 33

2007 23 1 2 2 28

2008 22 3 2 2 29

2009 22 1 7 5 35

More: HPA

thanks to Johann Tasker