zoonoses and communicable diseases common to ... - PAHO/WHO

ANIMAL ERYSIPELAS AND HUMAN ERYSIPELOID 19Diagnosis of animal erysipelas makes use of several serologic tests, such as agglutination,growth inhibition, passive hemagglutination, and complement fixation.Given the frequency of subclinical infections and vaccination in animals, serologictests are often difficult to interpret. A comparative study of the growth inhibition testand the complement fixation test concluded that the latter is more useful for diagnosis,since it eliminates low titers caused by subclinical infection or vaccination(Bercovich et al., 1981). Another serologic method is the indirect enzyme-linkedimmunosorbent assay (ELISA), which is as sensitive as the growth inhibition testand is easier and less expensive to conduct (Kirchhoff et al., 1985).Control: In persons exposed as a result of their occupations, prevention oferysipeloid primarily involves hygiene, namely frequent hand washing with disinfectantand proper treatment of wounds. Establishments where foods of animal originare processed should control rodent populations.The control of swine erysipelas depends mostly on vaccination. There are twovaccines in use that have given good results: a bacterin adsorbed on aluminumhydroxide and a live avirulent vaccine (EVA=erysipelas vaccine avirulent).Vaccination confers immunity for five to eight months. The bacterin is first administeredbefore weaning, followed by another dose two to four weeks later. The avirulentvaccine is administered orally via drinking water. The vaccines are not entirelysatisfactory in preventing chronic erysipelas and it is even suspected that vaccinationmay contribute to arthritic symptoms (Timoney et al., 1988). On the other hand,the great reduction or near elimination of the acute form in western Europe, Japan,and the US is probably due to systematic vaccination. In the case of an outbreak ofsepticemic erysipelas, it is important to destroy the carcasses immediately, disinfectthe premises, and to treat sick animals with penicillin and the rest of the herd withanti-erysipelas serum. Rotation of animals to different pastures and environmentalhygiene measures are also of great help in control.Bacterins are used on turkey-raising establishments, where the infection isendemic. A live vaccine administered orally via drinking water has yielded goodresults in tests (Bricker and Saif, 1983).BibliographyBercovich, Z., C.D. Weenk van Loon, C.W. Spek. Serological diagnosis of Erysipelothrixrhusiopathiae: A comparative study between the growth inhibition test and the complementfixation test. Vet Quart 3:19–24, 1981.Bille, J., M.P. Doyle. Listeria and Erysipelothrix. In: Ballows, A., W.J. Hausler, Jr., K.L.Hermann, et al. Manual of Clinical Microbiology. 5th ed. Washington, D.C.: AmericanSociety for Microbiology; 1991.Blood, D.C., O-M. Radostits. Veterinary Medicine. 7th ed. London: Baillière Tindall; 1989.Bricker, J.M., Y.M. Saif. Drinking water vaccination of turkeys, using live Erysipelothrixrhusiopathiae. J Am Vet Med Assoc 183:361–362, 1983.de Castro, A.F.P., O. Campedelli Filho, C. Troise. Isolamento de Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiaede peixes maritimos. Rev Inst Med Trop Sao Paulo 9:169–171, 1967.de Diego, A.I., S. Lavalle. Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae en aguas y pescados de la costaatlántica de la provincia de Buenos Aires (Argentina). Gac Vet 39:672–677, 1977.Eamens, G.J., M.J. Turner, R.E. Catt. Serotypes of Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae inAustralian pigs, small ruminants, poultry, and captive wild birds and animals. Aust Vet J65:249–252, 1988.