Zambia: Minister of Health statement on anthrax outbreak
Minister Sylvia T. Masebo highlights current outbreak affecting hundreds
Earlier this week, the Honorable Sylvia T. Masebo, Minister of Health for the country of Zambia, talked of details of the anthrax outbreak that has broken out in the country, just days before One Health Day.
Zambia is a landlocked country located in South-Central Africa, bordering the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique to the southeast, Zimbabwe and Botswana to the south, Namibia to the southwest, and Angola to the west.
According to Masebo, 335 human cases, including four deaths have been reported in six of the 10 provinces in Zambia:
Southern Province:
Two hundred and sixty-nine (269) cases and 2 deaths have been reported in the province. They are distributed as Sinazongwe with 242 cases including 2 deaths; Kazungula with 17 cases; Livingstone with 6 cases; Monze with 2 cases; and 1 case each in Choma and Kalomo.
Western Province:
Nineteen (19) cases have been reported in the province distributed as 9 in Sesheke, 6 in Mongu, 3 in Nalolo and 1 in Sioma.
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Eastern Province:
Thirty (30) cases have been reported in Eastern Province. Lumezi district has recorded 28 cases with 1 death whereas Lundazi has recorded 2 cases.
Lusaka Province:
The province has reported 13 cases in Lusaka District with 5 in Kanyama and 6 in Matero, 1 in chelstone and 1 in chilenje sub-districts.
Northwestern Province:
One (1) case has been reported in Kasempa District. The patient is said to have travelled from Southern Province with a history of eating meat from a carcass with unknown cause of death.
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Muchinga Province:
Three (3) cases have just been reported in Mpika District of Muchinga province from Nabwalya Rural Health Center. Sadly we have lost a 12 year old boy among the 3 cases. Nabwalya is an area which borders Mambwe district in Eastern province. As we speak a multisectoral team from Health and Agriculture is on the way to the area.
All these patients presented with skin sores or ulcers with some of them having nausea, vomiting and fever. A few have presented with chest discomfort and difficulty in breathing. While the majority of patients are being treated from home, six (6) are currently under admission in Maamba, Choma and Livingstone hospitals.
In addition to anthrax, Zambia is also battling outbreaks of cholera, measles, rabies, and scabies.
Minister Masebo said they have implemented a range of public health measures following a ‘One Health Approach’ to contain and prevent the spread of anthrax. These measures include:
Re-orientation of staff on disease identification and management to ensure early diagnosis and treatment
Enhanced event-based surveillance and early case detection
Ensuring that all facilities have an adequate supply of personal protective equipment (PPE) and medication needed for treatment
Public sensitization and community engagement
Ongoing monitoring and clinical evaluation of discharged patients
Working together with officers from Ministry of Livestock and fisheries, robust teams have been mobilized to ensure the spread of this disease among humans and animals is curtailed.
Anthrax is a very serious disease of livestock because it can potentially cause the rapid loss of a large number of animals in a very short time. Affected animals are often found dead with no illness detected.
When conditions become favorable, the spores germinate into colonies of bacteria. An example would be a grazing cow ingests spores that in the cow, germinate, grow spread and eventually kill the animal. Anthrax is caused by the bacterium, Bacillus anthracis. This spore forming bacteria can survive in the environment for decades because of its ability to resist heat, cold, drying, etc. This is usually the infectious stage of anthrax.
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There are no reports of person-to-person transmission of anthrax. People get anthrax by handling contaminated animal or animal products, consuming undercooked meat of infected animals and more recently, intentional release of spores.
There are three types of human anthrax with differing degrees of seriousness: cutaneous, gastrointestinal and inhalation.