Karoon Chanachai

During 2012 - 2016, goat farms in Sing Buri province were growing rapidly with support from the Thai government. In the following three years (2017-2019), the analysis of brucellosis surveillance data indicated that the seropositivity of brucellosis in goats increased. Therefore, this study attempted to identify possible risk factors associated with brucellosis seropositivity in meat goats raised in Sing Buri province of Thailand. A case-control study was conducted in a random sampling of 72 goat farms in Sing Buri province, Thailand. Questionnaires were used to collect information regarding farm production types, husbandry, goat health management, grazing management, breeding, carcass management, and goat purchasing. Bivariate and logistic regression analyses were used to determine the risk factors of Brucella seropositivity. Results revealed that the most frequent health complaint by the farmers was a stillbirth. Brucella seropositivity at the farm level was 26.4%. The two most probable risk factors for seropositivity included raising goats in a communal pasture and keeping goats with a history of clinical signs associated with brucellosis. In conclusion, approximately 25% of goat farms in Sing Buri province were infected by the bacteria genus Brucella. The farmers were recommended to attentively seek and cull for a brucellosis-suspected goat in their farms using clinical signs or symptoms together with active serosurveillance. Furthermore, communal pasture avoidance would also help prevent the goat from Brucella infection.

Background and Aim: Marek's disease (MD) is a common lymphoproliferative disease affecting chickens and causing economic losses in commercial poultry. The MD outbreak was noticed in the southern part of Thailand in 2019. The suspected cases were found with an abnormal number of cases of layers dying with clinical signs, for example, weakness and emaciation, with evidence of MD gross lesions. This study aimed to raise awareness of the MD outbreak through value chain analysis (VCA), identifying associated possible risk factors, and estimating the associated economic impact. Materials and Methods: Value chain analysis, including seasonal calendar, value chain diagram, and layer movement mapping of the layer industry, was conducted. High-risk stakeholders were identified on the basis of risk practices and interactions between stakeholders. A case–control study was conducted to determine risk factors associated with the MD outbreak on layer farms, and partial budget analysis was used to estimate economic losses associated with MD. Results: The value chain diagram showed the linkages between stakeholders, including estimation of the percentage of products moved from one stakeholder group to another and the negotiated price. Fourteen out of 35 layer farms were case farms. Farm size and source of birds were significantly associated with the MD outbreak. The MD outbreak caused total economic losses of 295,823 USD. Farms that slaughtered infected birds with additional revenues incurred losses of 140,930 USD, whereas farms that culled infected birds without additional revenue returned incurred losses of 1995 USD. Conclusion: The VCA provided a better understanding of the layer and egg businesses in South Thailand and guided the development of questionnaires for outbreak investigation. The potential risk factor findings suggested the need for further exploration of the source of the MD outbreak.

(1) Background: Thailand has made significant progress in reducing the number of human and animal rabies cases. However, control and elimination of the last remaining pockets of dog-mediated rabies have shown to be burdensome, predominantly as a result of the large numbers of free-roaming dogs without an owner that cannot be restrained without special efforts and therefore remain unvaccinated. To reach these dogs, the feasibility, and benefits of oral rabies vaccination (ORV) as a complementary tool has been examined under field conditions. (2) Methods: ORV of dogs was tested in five study areas of four provinces in Thailand. In these areas, sites with free-roaming dogs were identified with the support of local municipal workers and dog caretakers. ORV teams visited each of five study areas and distributed rabies vaccine (SPBN GASGAS) in three bait formats that were offered to the dogs using a hand-out and retrieval model. The three bait types tested included: egg-flavored baits, egg-flavored baits pasted with commercially available cat liquid snack, and boiled-intestine baits. A dog offered a vaccine bait was considered vaccinated when the discarded sachet was perforated or if a dog chewed vaccine bait at least 5 times before it swallowed the bait, including the sachet. (3) Results: A total of 2444 free-roaming dogs considered inaccessible for parenteral vaccination were identified at 338 sites. As not all dogs were approachable, 79.0% were offered a bait; of these dogs, 91.6% accepted the bait and subsequently 83.0% were considered successfully vaccinated. (4) Conclusion: Overall, 65.6% of the free-roaming dogs at these sites were successfully vaccinated by the oral route. Such a significant increase of the vaccination coverage of the free-roaming dog population could interrupt the rabies transmission cycle and offers a unique opportunity to reach the goal to eliminate dog-mediated human rabies in Thailand by 2030.

A multidisciplinary journal that focuses on public health and technology, public health informatics, mass media campaigns, surveillance, and innovation in public health practice and research. Also dedicated to rapid open data sharing during epidemics.