Haemorrhagic Septicaemia

Why in news?

At least 10 blackbucks have died at a zoo in Jharkhand’s Jamshedpur due to a bacterial infection - Haemorrhagic Septicaemia (HS).

• HS – It is an acute, highly fatal bacterial disease that affects water buffaloes and cattle in tropical regions.
• Caused by – Bacteria - Pasteurella multocida serotypes B:2 (Asia) and E:2 (Africa). The disease is also known as Pasteurellosis.
• Symptoms – Fever, dullness, reluctance to move, profuse salivation, serous nasal discharge, severe respiratory distress, protrusion of the tongue, painful swelling of the throat, and diarrhoea.
• Geography – Endemic in India, Southeast Asia, Africa, Middle East; sporadic in Europe.
• Host – Mainly affects cattle and water buffaloes, occasionally it affects camels, elephants, horses, donkeys, yaks, various species of deer, pigs, sheep and goats, etc.
• Transmission – Ingestion or inhalation via direct contact, fomites, contaminated feed/water, through respiratory secretions, etc.
• Seasonality – Worst epidemics occur during monsoon rains (high humidity & high temperature).
• Incubation Period – Usually few hours to days but some animals can carry the organism for varying periods without symptoms.
• Mortality rate – Animals usually collapse and died within 6–48 hours, animals with clinical signs, particularly buffalo, rarely recover (May be as high as 80%).
• Treatment – Timely antibiotic treatment can cure clinical cases if started early.
• Various sulfonamides, tetracyclines, penicillin, and chloramphenicol (where its use is permitted) are effective.
• Prevention – Key preventive measure, using inactivated P. multocida vaccines, especially before monsoon, segregate the sick animal from healthy ones, avoiding overcrowding, etc.

In Humans – While P. multocida can infect humans, the specific serotypes causing HS (B:2, E:2) haven't been confirmed to infect people, but caution is still advised.

It is listed by the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) as a major transboundary animal disease.

References

1. The Hindu | 10 blackbucks die due to 'bacterial infection'
2. Indimmune | Haemorrhagic Septicaemia
3. MSD Veterinary | Hemorrhagic Septicemia