November 7, 2003

28 Cattle Infected with Foot-And-Mouth Disease in Kyrgyzstan

An outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease has been reported in Kyrgyzstan, an independent republic in Central Asia, reported by local media on Thursday.

So far, 28 cases of the disease among cattle have been registered in the country's southern Batken region and the focuses of infection have been quarantined, Kyrgyz television said.

Livestock markets are closed and milk and meat sales are banned to prevent the spread of the disease. Meanwhile, veterinarians are vaccinating cattle.

According to World Health Organization, foot-and-mouth is the most contagious of animal diseases. In animals it is recognized by acute fever, followed by the development of blisters in the mouth and on the feet.

There exists the possibility that the disease can affect humans, but seldom of these cases. People catch the disease from close contact with infected animals or from drinking raw milk from infected cows.