Original Scientific Article
Spatio-temporal characteristics of the bluetongue epizooty in the Balkan peninsula from 2014 to February 2015
Zharko Stojmanovski
*
,
Blagojcho Tabakovski
Abstract
Starting in May 2014 an emerging Bluetongue (BT) serotype 4 (BTV-4) epizooty has affected the ruminant population of eleven countries from the Balkan Peninsula. Consequently, the veterinary services implemented various bio-security measures and a considerable discussion has been raised if future BTV surveillance and preventive measures should be taken in risk based zones and periods. Therefore, the objective of this work was to describe the spatial and temporal characteristics of the BTV-4 epizooty in the Balkan Peninsula from May 2014 to February 2015. We used the space-time permutation model of the scan statistic to identify the space-time disease clusters. The scan statistic was parameterized to a maximum temporal length of 150 days (duration of the epizooty in the Balkans in 2014) and a radius of 100 km as a maximum spatial cluster size (protection zone for BT). Results were significant (p < 0.05) to the maximum spatial size defined for the clusters. From the 6295 BT outbreaks the scan statistics identified 33 disease clusters in nine Balkan countries. The highest number of outbreaks occurred from September to November 2014.The earliest cluster was detected in Greece in July 2014 with a radius of 56 km. The latest cluster was detected in Croatia in February 2015 with a radius of 99,8 km. These results are a first description of the spatial and temporal characteristics of the 2014-February 2015 BT epizooty in the Balkans.
Keywords: bluetongue, space-time clustering, scan statistic, Balkans, surveillance, epizooty
References
1. Coetzee, P., Stokstad, M., Venter, E.H., Myrmel, M., Van Vuuren, M. (2012). Bluetongue:a historical and epidemiological perspective with the emphasis on South Africa. Virol. J. 9, 198. https://doi.org/10.1186/1743-422X-9-198 PMid:22973992 PMCid:PMC3492172
3. Vassalos, M. (1980). A case of bluetongue in the island of Lesbos (Greece). In:Bulletin de l'Office International des Epizooties. Presented at the 48. Session Generale du Comite de l'OIE [Office International des Epizooties]. 75 - Paris (France). 26-31 May 1980.
4. Nomikou, K., Mangana-Vougiouka, O., Panagiotatos, D.E. (2004). Overview of Bluetongue in Greece. Vet.Ita. 40 (3), 108-115. PMid:20419645
5. Saegerman, C. (Ed.), (2008). Bluetongue in northern Europe. OIE, Paris.
6. OIE-BT-Labnet-Bluetongue Reference Laboratories Network. [Interent]. Instituto Zooprofilallatico Sperimentale dell`Abruzzo e del Molise “G. Caporale“Campo Boaria, 64100 Teramo, Italy. [Accessed 01 November 2016]. http://oiebtnet.izs.it/btlabnet
11. Kulldorff, M. (2015). SatScan user guide for version 9.4. Available from: www.satscan.org
12. Robertson, C., Nelson, A.T., MacNab, Y.C., Lawson, A.B. (2010). Review of methods for space-time disease surveillance. Spatio and Spatio-temporal epidemiology 1, 105-116. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sste.2009.12.001 PMid:22749467
13. Commission of the European Communities. European Commission Decision of 20 November 2000 Implementing Council Directive 2000/75/EC Concerning the specific provisions for the control and eradication of bluetongue, Off J Eur Comm, 327, 22.12.200, p.74.
15. QGIS. A free and open source geographic information system. Available from: www.qgis.com
16. Ducheyne, E., De Deken, R., Bécu, S., Codina, B., Nomikou, K., Mangana-Vougiaki, O., Georgiev, G., Purse, B.V., Hendrickx, G. (2007). Quantifying the wind dispersal of Culicoides species in Greece and Bulgaria. Geospatial Health 1, 177–189. https://doi.org/10.4081/gh.2007.266 PMid:186↰3
17. Kyriakis, C.S., Billinis, C., Papadopoulos, E., Vasileiou, N.G.C., Athanasiou, L.V., Fthenakis, G.C. (2015). Bluetongue in small ruminants:An opinionated review, with a brief appraisal of the 2014 outbreak of the disease in Greece and the south-east Europe. Vet. Microbiol. 181, 66–74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vetmic.2015.08.004 PMid:26304745
18. Djurić, S., Simeunović, P., Mirilović, M., Stevanović, J., Glavinić, U., Vejnović, B., Stanimirović, Z. (2017). Retrospective analysis of the bluetongue outbreak in Serbia. Mac.Vet.Rev 40 (1):21-27. https://doi.org/10.1515/macvetrev-2016-0094
19. Pinna, F.A., Romero, L. (2015). Mission of the community veterinary emergency team in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia in relation to bluetongue situation. PAFF Committee 7-8th July 2015.
20. EFSA Panel on Animal Health and Welfare (2007). Report on epidemiological analysis of the 2006 bluetongue virus serotype 8 epidemic in north-western Europe, EFSA Journal 2007;5(4):RN-34, 366.
21. Saegerman, C., Berkvens, D., Mellor, P.S. (2008). Bluetongue epidemiology in the European Union. Emerg Infect Dis. 14, 539-544. https://doi.org/10.3201/eid1404.071441 PMid:18394269 PMCid:PMC2570923
22. Sternberg Lewerin, S., Hallgren, G., Elvander, M., Treiberg Berndtsson, L., Chirico, J., Mieziewska, K. (2010). Infection with bluetongue virus serotype 8 in Sweden in 2008. Vet. Rec. 167, 165–170. https://doi.org/10.1136/vr.c3380 PMid:20675625
23. Szmaragd, C., Wilson, A.J., Carpenter, S., Wood, J.L.N., Mellor, P.S., Gubbins, S. (2010). The Spread of bluetongue virus serotype 8 in Great Britain and its control by Vaccination. PLoS ONE 5, e9353. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0009353 PMid:20179768 PMCid:PMC2825270
24. Foxi, C., Delrio, G. (2010). Larval habitats and seasonal abundance of Culicoides biting midges found in association with sheep in northern Sardinia, Italy. Med. Vet. Entomol. 24, 199–209. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2915.2010.00861.|ax PMid:20604864
25. Guis, H., Caminade, C., Calvete, C., Morse, A.P., Tran, A., Baylis, M. (2012). Modelling the effects of past and future climate on the risk of bluetongue emergence in Europe. J. R. Soc. Interface 9, 339–350. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2011.0255 PMid:21697167 PMCid:PMC3243388
26. Guis, H., Tran, A., De La Rocque, S., Baldet, T., Gerbier, G., Barragué, B., Biteau-Coroller, F., Roger, F., Viel, J.-F., Mauny, F. (2007). Use of high spatial resolution satellite imagery to characterize landscapes at risk for bluetongue. Vet. Res. 38, 669–683. https://doi.org/10.1051/vetres:2007025 PMid:17583664
27. Hendrickx, G., Gilbert, M., Staubach, C., Elbers, A., Mintiens, K., Gerbier, G., Ducheyne, E. (2008). A wind density model to quantify the airborne spread of Culicoides species during north-western Europe bluetongue epidemic, Prev. Vet. Med. 87(1-2):162–181. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.prevetmed.2008.06.009 PMid:1↿355
28. Faes, C., van der Stede, Y., Guis, H., Staubach, C., Ducheyne, E., Hendrickx, G., Mintiens, K. (2013). Factors affecting bluetongue serotype 8 spread in Northern Europe in 2006:The geographical epidemiology. Prev. Vet. Med. 110, 149–158. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.prevetmed.2012.11.026 PMid:23273733
29. Panagiotatos, D.E. (2004). Regional overview of bluetongue viruses, vectors, surveillance and unique features in Eastern Europe between 1998-2003. Vet. Ital. 40(3):61-73. PMid:20419637
30. Sailleau, C., Bréard, E., Viarouge, C., Vitour, D., Romey, A., Garnier, A., Fablet, A., Lowenski, S., Gorna, K., Caignard, G., Pagneux, C., Zientara, S. (2015). Re-emergence of bluetongue virus serotype 8 in France, 2015. Transbound Emerg Dis. 64, 998-1000. https://doi.org/10.1111/tbed.12453 PMid:26617414
31. Iglesias, I., Perez, A.M., De la Torre, A., Mu-oz, M.J., Martínez, M., Sánchez-Vizcaíno, J.M. (2010). Identifying areas for infectious animal disease surveillance in the absence of population data:Highly pathogenic avian influenza in wild bird populations of Europe. Prev. Vet. Med. 96, 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.prevetmed.2010.05.002 PMid:20537421
Copyright
©2017 Stojmanovski Z. This is an open-access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Acknowledgement
We thank Dr. Elena Arsevska for the given advice during the analysis and writing of this work. She was involved in the design of the study, provision of data, as well as revision of the final manuscript.
Conflict of Interest Statement
The authors declared that they have no potential conflict of interest with respect to the authorship and/or publication of this article.
Citation Information
Macedonian Veterinary Review. Volume 41, Issue 1, Pages 65-72, p-ISSN 1409-7621, e-ISSN 1857-7415, DOI: 10.1515/macvetrev-2017-0033, 2018
10.1515/macvetrev-2017-0033
