this World Organization for Animal Health (WHOA) through its World Animal Health Information System (WAHIS) Latest data released on the progress of avian influenza around the world status report The weeks from January 27 to February 16, 2024.
During the three weeks covered by the report, 35 poultry outbreaks and 64 other bird outbreaks in the Americas, Asia and Europe.Additionally, during this period, approx. 1.2 million poultry They died or were sacrificed all over the world, especially in Europe. Given these numbers confirmed by the World Health Organization, we may be close to reaching the peak of the epidemic, although we still need to analyze how the disease evolves in the coming months.
While birds remain the worst affected, during the three weeks covered by the report No outbreaks in mammals have been reported. However, the World Health Organization notes the importance of reporting all outbreaks of avian influenza in unusual animals because the susceptibility of mammals to contracting the disease has been demonstrated in recent months.
“High-quality information is key to support early detection and rapid response to possible threats to animal health and public health”
Therefore, the World Health Organization recommends that countries, in addition to taking measures, should also maintain surveillance Biosecurity and precautions Avian influenza outbreaks in poultry and other species continue to be reported on farms. “High-quality information is key to supporting early detection and rapid response to possible threats to animal health and public health,” the organization commented.
In Europe, the most affected countries are Czech Republic, Germany, Russia, Poland and United Kingdom within three weeks of analysis. Asia has reported just one case in Japan and another in the United States. No incidents were reported in Africa and Oceania. This shows that Europe is still the focus of avian influenza infections and needs to be more vigilant.
WHOA reports that Europe has lost a total of 855,354 animals, including dead animals and animals sacrificed due to possible contagion in the epidemic.
In terms of the number of outbreaks, the report states that a total of 35 outbreaks were reported in poultry from 12 different countries. all, There are 27 confirmed cases in Europe, 4 cases in Asia, and 4 cases in the Americas. In addition, the World Health Organization reports Total European losses 855,354including dead animals and animals sacrificed due to possible infections during the epidemic.
Regarding confirmed cases in other bird species, Europe is again the worst affected continent 58 outbreaks have been reported by WAHIS. This time, Asia reported no outbreaks of avian influenza, while the United States reported six outbreaks in other non-poultry species.
During this period, the total number of confirmed epidemics in non-free-range birds was 64, reported by 14 countries. Among them are Germany, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Denmark, Slovenia, Lithuania, Moldova, Poland, Czech Republic, Romania, Sweden, Ukraine, Brazil and the United States.
According to seasonal trends analyzed by the World Health Organization, the spread of the disease is lowest in September, increases in October and peaks in February.Therefore, the latest reported cases may mark peak of infection Avian Flu, from then on, the spread of the disease will be greatly reduced.