Artigenda
World Zoonos Day
When: annually, July 6.
July 6, 1885, was the day Louis Pasteur (27 December 1822 – 28 September 1895) gave the first injection of a vaccine against rabies. To commemorate this, there is World Zoonoses Day.
Source: Wikimedia Commons.
The focus of this day is the transmission of diseases between humans and animals. You can read more about this topic via the RIVM website. The best-known examples besides rabies are HIV, Lyme, Q fever, tuberculosis, scabies, botulism, anthrax, MRSA and, of course, COVID-19. The influenza virus is also a zoonosis. Avian flu especially H5N1, which broke out in 2021, is being closely monitored by numerous scientists, the WHO and the RIVM. There have been cases where this virus also “spilt over” from animals to humans.
The above examples are not the only cases of zoonoses. Consider also BSE, which can lead to Creuztfeldt-Jakob disease in humans, Ebola virus, Marburg virus and Lassa fever.
No duty to report
For zoonoses, in principle, there is no duty to report. This means that a treating doctor is not obliged to report it to an official body. However, this is often done in the Netherlands and western countries. Important to know: the more intensive the contact with animals, the higher the risk of zoonoses. However, it is important to distinguish between animal species. So you can just keep cuddling with your cat or dog. With a bat, it’s a different story. The question, of course, is whether this animal will be able to appreciate it.
Corona pandemic
A zoonosis can lead to an epidemic. The best-known example is the corona pandemic. We all know the consequences.
At the World Health Organization (WHO)
website, there is an overview of what is being done in the fight against zoonoses.
