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Anthrax Outbreak in Maros
Jakarta, An anthrax outbreak has occurred in Maros, a district in South Sulawesi. Within 2 weeks, 5 cattle had died from anthrax and 3 people had been infected.
Meanwhile, blood samples have been taken from 55 people who consumed anthrax-contaminated meat. The people are now under surveillance of the local health office.
“Test results from Maros Disease Investigation Center on March 19 were positive for anthrax. Five cattle had died and 1 was slaughtered because it was sick,” said Director General of Disease Control and Environmental Health from the Ministry of Health, Prof. dr. Tjandra Yoga Aditama SpP(K), MARS, DTM & H, DTCE in a press release on Friday (2/4/2010).
The outbreak occurred in Tenrigangkae village, Manadai subdistrict in Maros district. The district itself is endemic for anthrax.
The incidence started with the death of 5 cattle and the slaughter of 1 sick cattle. The meat of the slaughtered cattle was divided among the people of the village on March 19, 2010.
On March 29, 2010, 3 suspect patients were identified. They were those who had contact with the cattle or slaughtered and worked on the carcass. The three patients had black skin lesions. The local health office collected blood samples from the patients and put them on antibiotics.
To prevent further spread of the disease, the local health office had given medications to people who ate the contaminated meat on March 31, 2010. A total of 55 people were known to have eaten the contaminated meat.
“The Livestock Service Office had also vaccinated the animals. So far no new cases have been reported,” said dr. Tjandra.
Previously in 2009 there were 17 cases of anthrax in Indonesia with 2 human fatalities. There are 6 Provinces with human anthrax cases, which are:
1. West Java (Bogor city, Bogor district, Depok city)
2. Central Java (Semarang city, Boyolali district)
3. NTB (Sumbawa, Bima)
4. NTT (Sikka, Ende)
5. South Sulawesi (Makassar, Wajo, Gowa)
6. DKI Jakarta (South Jakarta).
Meanwhile from the livestock aspect there are 11 infected Provinces: West Sumatra, Jambi, DKI Jakarta, West Java, Cental Java, NTB, NTT, South Sulawesi, Southeast Sulawesi, Central Sulawesi, and Papua.
Anthrax is a disease caused by the deadly bacteria Bacillus anthracis. Anthrax often infects farm animals such as cattle or goat.
In severe cases, thick blood could be found coming out from the ears, nose, or mouth. Transmission to human is through consumption of anthrax-contaminated meat or skin.
Symptoms in human include high fever, difficult breathing, headache, and restlessness. The disease could manifest on the skin, respiratory tract, or gastrointestinal tract and in some cases could cause meningitis.
Source: Detik.com