What is Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD) in Cows and how does it transmit to other cattle?
Lumpy skin disease (LSD) in cows is a viral infected disease that affects cattle. This disease is transmitted by blood-sucking insects such as certain species of flies, mosquitoes, and ticks.
It causes fever, and skin nodules and can be fatal, especially in animals not previously exposed to the virus.
- This virus mainly infects cattle, buffalo, and deer. Scabies is a viral disease transmitted by blood-sucking insects such as flies, mosquitoes, and ticks. It causes fever and skin nodules and can be fatal in cattle.
- Rough skin disease is a contagious viral disease that spreads among cattle through direct contact with mosquitoes, flies, lice, and bees, and through contaminated water and food. It is not transmitted to humans from cattle.
Where does LSD in Cows start from?
The disease is most common in the wet summer and fall months, especially in low-lying areas near water bodies, but it can also occur in the dry season. Blood-sucking insects such as mosquitoes and flies are a mechanical means of spreading disease. A single vector was not identified
Outbreaks of mass skin disease are usually sporadic, as they depend on animal movement, immune status, wind, and rainfall patterns, and affect vector populations.
This disease can also be transmitted to calves through contaminated milk. In experimentally infected cattle, LSDV was observed in saliva 11 days after fever, in semen 22 days after fever, and in skin nodules 33 days after fever. The virus is not detected in urine or faeces.
Signs and Symptoms of lumpy skin disease (LSD) in Cows
The symptoms of the lumpy disease include:
- 41 degrees Celsius high fever
- Swollen lymph nodes
- The appearance of numerous nodules on the skin (up to 5 cm in diameter)
- Discharge from eyes and nose.
- Loss of movement or lameness
Experts say the main symptoms of widespread skin disease, a contagious viral disease that affects livestock, are fever, runny nose and tears, eye sores, swollen lymph nodes, and low milk production. Nodules are also formed on the skin.
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Total number of cows dead in Rajasthan and Gujrat
The total number of infected cows in these three states is close to 5 million, with the highest number of cases reported in Rajasthan where 310,000 cows are infected. Gujarat reported 84,000 cases of LSD and Punjab had 60,000 infected cows.
Of the 19,200 dead cows, Rajasthan reported the most, followed by Gujarat and Punjab. In Rajasthan alone, 14,000 cows perished. Most cases in Rajasthan were reported from Sri Ganganagar, with 2,752 deaths, 1,657 deaths in Barmer, and 1,691 deaths in Jodhpur.
In neighbouring Gujarat, more than 3,150 cattle, mostly cows, died on Friday as the virus spread in 125 new villages. Punjab reported the death of 2100 cows due to LSD. 800 head were killed on Friday, bringing the total number of infected cattle to nearly 60,000.
Is it safe to consume milk for humans from affected cows?
Lumpy Skin Disease won’t impact milk production, says Amul MD
Speaking to PTI about the safety and quality of milk from contaminated cows, IVRI co-director Ashok Kumar Mohanty said that LSD is a non-human zoonotic disease and cannot be transmitted from animals to humans.
He added: However, milk production in infected cows is affected depending on the severity of the disease and the level of animal immunity.
Mohanty said there may be a local impact on milk production, but it is currently difficult to quantify because of a lack of accurate data on the prevalence of the infection in cattle across the country.
Treatment of Lumpy Skin Disease:
- Antiviral treatment with methylene blue
- Use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs to treat inflammatory diseases
- Use of paracetamol for high fever
- Prescribing antibiotics to control secondary infections
- Vaccination
How does methylene blue help Lumpy?
Methylene blue (MB) is a broad-spectrum antiviral agent and its antiviral properties against a variety of viruses are well known. Methylene blue has recently proven to be very effective in reducing the viral load of SARS-COV2.
MB aids in the treatment of mass skin disease by reducing the viral load in infected cattle through its multi-mechanism antiviral action until the body mounts a natural immune response. Complications such as multiple organ damage.
It helps to speed recovery (reduce recovery time) and reduce the mortality rate.
What are the Initiatives taken by the Indian Government to overcome Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD) in Cows?
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said the Center and state governments are working together to control the outbreak of lumpy skin disease (LSD) in cows plaguing India’s dairy sector.
At the inaugural session of the International Dairy Federation (IDF) World Dairy Congress, held for the first time in 48 years, Prime Minister Modi spoke about the development of a domestic vaccine against LSD and its rapid spread across India. Preventing cattle from moving from one state to another is a measure to control this disease.
PTI said there was an average impact of 0.5% on milk production in Gujarat, while R S Sodhi, managing director of the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF), which markets dairy products under the Amul brand, said: Dairy MD I Quoted by Manish Bandlish. . Cooperatives Minister Amit Shah said in an evening meeting that his ministry will have 200,000 new cooperatives and three multi-state cooperatives for organic products by 2024, with dairy products playing a major role. He said he plans to create a cooperative.
Prime Minister Modi said in his speech that India needs a balanced ecosystem in the dairy sector. This increases farmers’ incomes, promotes chemical-free farming practices, and improves animal health.
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DIAGNOSIS
Other clinical signs include general weakness, eye and nasal discharge, fever, and rapid loss of milk production. Morbidity and mortality in the recent Eurasian epidemic were approximately 10% and 1%, respectively. The severity of the disease varies from mild to fatal in 10% of the affected cows in the herd. Some cows develop very few nodules that are difficult to detect. Some people develop multiple nodules up to 3 cm in diameter. The factors that determine which cows develop mild disease and which develop severe disease are unknown.
The disease can be confirmed by laboratory tests, where there are tests to detect viral DNA or antibodies.
LSD can be confused with a number of diseases, including pseudodermatosis (caused by bovine herpesvirus 2), bovine papular stomatitis (parapoxvirus), cowpox, cutaneous tuberculosis, Demodex, insect or tick bites, urticaria, allergy To the photo, hives. Papillomatosis (fibrous papilloma, “wart”), pestilence, skin disease, veznitosis, hypoderma bovis infection, and onchocerciasis. Symptoms such as fever and loss of milk are non-specific and are seen in many other diseases.
SUMMARY
Cause:
Lumpy skin disease (LSD) in cows is caused by the infection of cattle and buffaloes with the smallpox virus LSDV.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), mortality is less than 10%.
Rough skin disease was first observed in 1929 as an epidemic in Zambia. At first, it was thought to be the result of poisoning or hypersensitivity to insect bites.
Infection:
Rough skin disease is spread among animals mainly through the bites of insects (carriers) such as mosquitoes and flies.
Signs:
- It mainly includes fever, discharge from the eyes and nose, saliva dripping from the mouth, and blisters on the body.
- Animals stop eating and have problems chewing and eating, which results in reduced milk production.
Prevention and treatment:
- Immunization against these diseases is covered under the Animal Health and Disease Control Program of India.
- There is no specific antiviral medication to treat severe skin disease. The only treatment available is supportive care for cattle.
- This includes treating skin lesions with wound care sprays and using antibiotics to prevent secondary skin infections and pneumonia.
- Anti-inflammatory painkillers can be used to maintain the appetite of affected animals.
