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News & Reports
BSAVA CONGRESS
BVA President mans up for hantavirus research project ROBIN Hargreaves, the BVA President, volunteered to take part in a study being conducted by Public Health England (PHE) to determine the risk of hantavirus infection to human health. Nurses from PHE were present at the BSAVA congress in Birmingham last week to collect blood samples and information from volunteers within the veterinary professions. The data gathered at the congress will be fed into the wider study. Hantaviruses are normally carried by rodents and are present throughout the world. They cause a range of diseases in people, ranging from mild, flu-like illness to severe respiratory illness or haemorrhagic and kidney disease. Rodents are chronically infected by hantaviruses, showing no signs of infection, and shed live virus in their excreta into the environment. PHE says that, at present, the risk of people picking up infection is unknown, but that exposure in the UK might be more widespread than previously thought. Hantavirus infection has been found in wild and pet rats in the UK very recently, it says, and a few cases have been reported in people who have not travelled to countries where hantaviruses are known to occur. The study aims to help determine the size of the problem.
BVA President Robin Hargreaves becomes the 165th volunteer to give a sample of blood during the BSAVA congress as part of Public Health England’s research into hantavirus infection
The study will determine previous exposure to hantaviruses through the detection of antibodies against these viruses in three at-risk groups and compare them with a baseline taken from the general population. The groups are defined as: Group 1, general population; Group 2, owners and breeders of domesticated ‘fancy’ rats; Group 3, those with occupational exposure to pet rats and breeders who supply pet shops; Group 4, those with occupational exposure to wild rats: small animal vets, pest control workers, sewage workers and farmers. At the BSAVA congress, 170 volunteers donated 10 ml of blood and completed a questionnaire for PHE. The blood samples
will be sent to the Rare and Imported Pathogens Laboratory for analysis. The results will be used to calculate the percentage of those tested who are seropositive and, ultimately, help to develop risk assessments and produce public health advice for those in contact with wild or domesticated rats. PHE says it hopes to be in a position to publish its findings later this year. Volunteers are still being sought to take part in the research. More information is available from the study team by e-mail: [email protected]. Further information about hantaviruses can be found at www.hpa.org.uk doi: 10.1136/vr.g2643 April 12, 2014 | Veterinary Record | 371
Downloaded from http://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/ on April 20, 2015 - Published by group.bmj.com
BVA President mans up for hantavirus research project Veterinary Record 2014 174: 371
doi: 10.1136/vr.g2643 Updated information and services can be found at: http://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/content/174/15/371
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To request permissions go to: http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions To order reprints go to: http://journals.bmj.com/cgi/reprintform To subscribe to BMJ go to: http://group.bmj.com/subscribe/
News & Reports
BSAVA CONGRESS
BVA President mans up for hantavirus research project ROBIN Hargreaves, the BVA President, volunteered to take part in a study being conducted by Public Health England (PHE) to determine the risk of hantavirus infection to human health. Nurses from PHE were present at the BSAVA congress in Birmingham last week to collect blood samples and information from volunteers within the veterinary professions. The data gathered at the congress will be fed into the wider study. Hantaviruses are normally carried by rodents and are present throughout the world. They cause a range of diseases in people, ranging from mild, flu-like illness to severe respiratory illness or haemorrhagic and kidney disease. Rodents are chronically infected by hantaviruses, showing no signs of infection, and shed live virus in their excreta into the environment. PHE says that, at present, the risk of people picking up infection is unknown, but that exposure in the UK might be more widespread than previously thought. Hantavirus infection has been found in wild and pet rats in the UK very recently, it says, and a few cases have been reported in people who have not travelled to countries where hantaviruses are known to occur. The study aims to help determine the size of the problem.
BVA President Robin Hargreaves becomes the 165th volunteer to give a sample of blood during the BSAVA congress as part of Public Health England’s research into hantavirus infection
The study will determine previous exposure to hantaviruses through the detection of antibodies against these viruses in three at-risk groups and compare them with a baseline taken from the general population. The groups are defined as: Group 1, general population; Group 2, owners and breeders of domesticated ‘fancy’ rats; Group 3, those with occupational exposure to pet rats and breeders who supply pet shops; Group 4, those with occupational exposure to wild rats: small animal vets, pest control workers, sewage workers and farmers. At the BSAVA congress, 170 volunteers donated 10 ml of blood and completed a questionnaire for PHE. The blood samples
will be sent to the Rare and Imported Pathogens Laboratory for analysis. The results will be used to calculate the percentage of those tested who are seropositive and, ultimately, help to develop risk assessments and produce public health advice for those in contact with wild or domesticated rats. PHE says it hopes to be in a position to publish its findings later this year. Volunteers are still being sought to take part in the research. More information is available from the study team by e-mail: [email protected]. Further information about hantaviruses can be found at www.hpa.org.uk doi: 10.1136/vr.g2643 April 12, 2014 | Veterinary Record | 371
Downloaded from http://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/ on April 20, 2015 - Published by group.bmj.com
BVA President mans up for hantavirus research project Veterinary Record 2014 174: 371
doi: 10.1136/vr.g2643 Updated information and services can be found at: http://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/content/174/15/371
These include:
Email alerting service
Receive free email alerts when new articles cite this article. Sign up in the box at the top right corner of the online article.
Notes
To request permissions go to: http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions To order reprints go to: http://journals.bmj.com/cgi/reprintform To subscribe to BMJ go to: http://group.bmj.com/subscribe/
