Hog Cholera
The HC situation in Europe is now so favourable that complete eradication is attainable if a common policy is adopted by countries still affected.
European countries should establish uniform criteria, standards and regulations for:
preventive measures, including:
Sterilization and use of waste foods (swill) to be fed to pigs.
Identification of pigs, the control of movement, and certification for trade purposes.
control measures, including:
Procedures for dealing with cases of HC virus infection in order to minimize spread.
Diagnostic methods and calibration of tests.
The reporting and confirmation of outbreaks as well as tracing sources and contacts.
All laboratories handling HC virus should employ strict security measures to prevent the escape of virus.
Continuing attention should be given to the training of field and laboratory staff as well as to increasing disease awareness of the farming community.
Screening and surveillance systems must be strengthened to detect residual HC virus, particularly in breeding herds, before it can give rise to further clinical outbreaks.
Epidemiological activities are needed in each country. The data collection and analysis systems should be harmonized to foster the most efficient planning, economic evaluation, and adjustments of the HC surveillance and control programmes.
In the interest of the earliest possible elimination of HC virus, vaccination should cease as soon as it appears to be economically advantageous.
Until vaccination is stopped, comparative evaluation of the HC vaccines in use should be undertaken. A common system of quality control should also be established.
The criteria for declaring a country or area free of HC should be agreed.
African Swine Fever
It was recommended that all possible support should be given to the authorities in Spain and Portugal in their efforts to survey the distribution of ASF infection in their countries and to communicate the results to international authorities and particularly to neighbouring states which were at special risk.
It was recommended that further studies of the tick reservoir-vector problem should be carried out in the area of high endemicity in Spain and that every encouragement should be given to research on other potential vector/reservoirs.
In view of the increase in the number of mild and inapparent cases and the necessity to recognize ASF rapidly wherever it appeared in countries hitherto unaffected, it was recommended that research should be commissioned to produce non-infectious antigen (cell-culture) preparations which would have a known sensitivity in detecting and assaying antibodies to ASF virus. Many countries would probably wish to hold such material available for use in their own central diagnostic laboratories.
It was further recommended that regular short training courses should be held in Spain so that personnel from national laboratories could update their knowledge of techniques useful in evaluating the virological situation. The services provided by the main reference laboratory in Madrid were noted with great appreciation by many speakers.
