Anthrax Can Directly Infect Human

Bogor (ANTARA News) - Anthrax is always a hot issue when approaching Idul Adha holiday. The disease is not always contracted from livestock, but it could directly infect humans, said Head of the Animal Disease Prevention and Eradication Section of the Livestock and Fishery Service Office of Bogor district, West Java, Prihatini Mulyawati, DVM, on Friday. She said that anthrax is a disease in livestock caused by Bacillus anthracis bacteria that lives in the soil. In Bogor district there have been cases of human mortality associated with anthrax, she said.

“Farmers and people touching soil contaminated with Bacillus anthracis could contract the disease,” she said. Prihatini explained that Bacillus anthracis bacteria could form spores and if it infects human or livestock, the incubation period is three days. umans or livestock infected will develop high fever. “If humans or livestock animals infected by anthrax are not treated immediately, death could occur,” she said.
In between October 18 to 21, 2003, six family members of livestock farmer Ayub Anshori (62), citizen of Citaringgul subvillage RT 01/04, Citaringgul village, Babakan Madang subdistrict, had died because of anthrax. Victims were Kokom (35), Eha Julaeha (28), Atin Prihatin (13), Latifah (12), Megasari (12), and Nurul Novianti (1,5).
At that time, the family had consumed offal from a goat that was infected with anthrax. In response to that case, Agriculture Minister Anton Apriyantono had visited the family and witnessed the elimination of anthrax infected goats and its pen.
Prihatini said, another citizen of Bogor district that had contracted anthrax was a village midwife of Karang Tengah Village in Babakan Madang subdistrict. The disease caused part of her body to swell with blackish-red discoloration. “But the village midwife managed to recover,” she said.
Prihatini also explained that there are three types of anthrax; the first is jane hideung that affects the skin such as the one suffered by the village midwife in Karang Tengah, Babakan Madang. Another type affects the digestive system such as suffered by the family of Ayub Anshori from Citaringgul village, Babakan Madang. Meanwhile the third type affects the respiratory system, causing the patient to suffer from difficult breathing.
“But the third type of anthrax has never been found in Indonesia,” she said.
Several anthrax endemic areas in Bogor district are Nanggewer and Keradenan administrative village in Cibinong subdistrict, Bojonggede and Citayam village in Bojonggede subdistrict, Hambalang village in Citeureup subdistrict, Citaringgul village in Babakan Madang, Linggarmukti village in Klapanunggal subdistrict, Sirnagalih village in Jonggol subdistrict, and Cijujung village in Sukaraja subdistrict.(*)

Source : Antara [edited]