Cow bug threat to humans

Tuesday December 23rd, 2008

TB in cattle still poses a threat to humans in Britain, researchers warn today.

Doctors told how a veterinary nurse and her daughter contracted bovine TB, probably from local farm animals.

The disease is at the centre of controversy after decades of efforts, including the culling of badgers, have failed to stem it.

The woman worked in rural Cornwall and her dog also contracted the disease, according to the report in the journal Thorax.

Dr Dinesh Shrikrishna, of the Royal Cornwall Hospital, Truro, says bovine TB is still responsible for fewer than one per cent of cases in TB in Britain - despite rising rates among animals.

He warns the disease poses a "low, but ongoing, public health risk."

He writes: "TB infection in animals can be passed on to people through breathing in airborne infectious droplets, drinking unpasteurised milk, or, more rarely, contact with broken skin.

"Doctors, vets, and public health officials need to remain vigilant for signs of this often forgotten infection."

Thorax 2009; 64:89-91

Tags: UK News

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