Some 35,000 cattle have died due to lumpy skin disease in nine Indian states as on August 23, 2022. Rajasthan and Gujarat reported the maximum number of cases, according to the department of animal husbandry. Around 900,000 cattle have been infected across the country, stated official reports. India has the world’s highest number of cattle (303 million) and the new virus poses a considerable threat, especially to stray cattle in the country. So, What is Lumpy skin disease or LSD?
Lumpy skin disease is a viral illness. It is caused by a lumpy skin disease virus of the capripoxvirus genus. LSD appears as nodules of 2-5 cm diameters all over the body, particularly around the head, neck, limbs, udder and genitals. The lump gradually becomes big deep wounds.
The virus mainly spreads through blood-sucking vectors, like houseflies, ticks, and mosquitoes during the monsoon months. LSD poses a greater threat to stray cattle as their movements are unrestricted and difficult to isolate, they added. The disease has spread to Rajasthan, Gujarat, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Jammu. In India, the LSD mortality rate is 2-3 per cent of the infected cattle. Mortality is also noted to be the highest among stray cattle as they are weaker and generally have low immunity.
Historically, LSD was confined to Africa and was first reported in 1929. But in recent years, the disease has spread in territories beyond the endemic areas in recent years. The disease reached China and India in August 2019 and by the end of 2020, it had spread to seven countries. Currently, 5 million healthy animals in these nine states have been vaccinated with the goat pox vaccine to prevent the spread of the disease. Goat pox vaccine is tried and tested in the country as the virus is antigenically similar to sheep and goat pox. Officials are targeting to vaccinate 900,000-1 million animals in the coming days.
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