Villagers contract anthrax after consuming infected meat

SEVERAL villagers in Masvosva, Makoni District contracted anthrax after butchering infected cattle and some could be endangering their lives by depending on unscientific methods to cure the hemorrhagic infection.

Though no immediate reports of human deaths were recorded, sources at Rusape District Hospital confirmed more than 20 hospitalised cases of anthrax following consumption of infected carcasses.

The District Medical Officer Dr Mohammed Khaled confirmed the developments, but said there were no deaths.

"Yes, such cases were recorded from our clinics; the victims were treated and discharged. There were no deaths," said Dr Khaled.

Dr Khaled dissuaded members of the public from consuming meat from animals whose causes of deaths are unknown.  Humans usually get anthrax through direct contact with infected livestock, often when spores get into a cut on the skin or eating infected carcasses. Without treatment, anthrax can be fatal, but early treatment with antibiotics is very effective.

Anthrax has killed hundreds of animals mostly in the communal part of districts and the situation that was compounded by ignorance by farmers who concealed their animal deaths from veterinary authorities fearing arrest.

The latest outbreak was first noticed when infected villagers sought medication at Masvosva Clinic and it resultantly emerged thar cattle in the area started dying as early as October, but farmers were not reporting the sporadic deaths for timely vaccine intervention to the veterinary authorities.

Veterinary authorities only moved in after being advised of anthrax outbreak in patients from health authorities in the district. The Makoni district veterinary officer Dr Kupa Hwana confirmed the outbreak, but beamoaned lack of cooperation from farmers.

"As a department we rarely see infected animals because they die so quickly. We rely on information from farmers. The problem we face is that the cattle die in a matter of hours with no symptoms and if the famers conceal such information, we get stuck.  We are having a situation where farmers eat infected meat, and when we ask, they deny that their cattle are dying.

"It was only when they eventually fell sick and approached the nearby health centres that it was discovered that it was anthrax," he said.

Dr Hwana dissuaded farmers from slaughtering sick animals, adding that dead ones must be properly buried to avoid the spread of the disease.

Dr Hwana said the movement of cattle from these affected areas has been suspended with immediate effect, and those caught moving animals will be penalised because the spread of the disease is partially blamed on illegal animal movements.

"We have moved in to  Masvosva and the neighbouring areas and at the same time concientising people not eat meat from dead animals.

"We are also educating farmers on the need to cooperate with our offices to ensure that when similar cases happen we are swiftly advised so that we can save the situation.

"Farmers must not conceal any information regarding animal health from our officials.  We have also banned the movement of animals from that area as a precautionary measure.

"Anthrax is a notifiable disease and the division of veterinary services must be notified of suspected cases," said Dr Hwana, adding that the disease presents itself as sudden death and animals are found with tarry blood oozing from the nose, mouth and anus.

"Carcasses bloat and decompose very rapidly.

"The carcasses of suspected anthrax cases should never be opened and the meat should never be consumed.

"Should a case of anthrax occur on your farm, you may help to stop the spread of infection by burning or burying dead animals, and disinfecting the place using the most effective disinfectants like quicklime, formalin or caustic soda," said Dr Hwana.

Anthrax periodically breaks out in Zimbabwe, where it ends up spreading from cattle to people as people consume meat from infected animals.

Natural anthrax is endemic in Zimbabwe where its bacillus spores can live for decades in dry soil and are ingested by animals ruminating for remnants of vegetation in the driest months of September and October.

Anthrax outbreaks happen occasionally in livestock herds and wild animals in Zimbabwe, usually in the Gonarezhou area.

Animals typically contract the disease by ingesting or inhaling spores that can survive in soil for decades. Once infected, livestock can die within hours.

Anthrax bacteria react to drought and other harsh conditions by producing more spores, and experts said conditions are ripe for disease this year. A drought stretches throughout the entirety of Manicaland. The bacteria's spores seem to survive better in alkaline soil with high levels of calcium, a type abundant in the province.

In general, however, the spores are extremely durable and can lie dormant for years. Once ingested, they reconstitute and spread rapidly through the body of warm-blooded animals. The veterinary department is suffering from perennial shortage of vaccines and farmers are being encouraged to purchase their own vaccines.