Notes to broadcasters on Rift Valley Fever:
Date Posted: March 15th, 2010
Recent cases of Rift Valley Fever in South Africa are the latest outbreak of a disease which can be deadly to humans and financially devastating to livestock industries. Rift Valley Fever was first described in the 1930s, when the disease hit sheep herds in Kenya’s Rift Valley. Subsequent outbreaks have affected sheep, goats, cattle, and camels, in addition to humans. Outbreaks have been recorded in Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, and Yemen.
The impact of Rift Valley Fever on livestock also varies. According to the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), between 10-70 per cent of infected calves and up to 90 per cent of infected lambs will die, while mortality rates are usually less than 10 per cent among infected adult cows and 20-30 per cent among infected adult sheep. The OIE also reports that abortion rates can be as high as 85 per cent among cows and 100 per cent among sheep infected with Rift Valley Fever.
The severity of the disease in humans ranges from mild to severe. In its mild form, Rift Valley Fever causes flu-like symptoms such as fever, muscle pain, joint pain, and headaches, and usually lasts 4-7 days. The disease is frequently deadly in the haemorrhagic fever form.
Additional information on how the disease affects humans can be found here: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs207/en/
Additional information on how the disease affects animals can be found on these sites:
-http://www.oie.int/eng/maladies/fiches/a_A080.htm
-http://www.fao.org/ag/againfo/subjects/en/health/diseases-cards/rvf.html
A Farm Radio script package originally published in April 2002 provides additional information on livestock diseases. The script Animals diseases can affect people (Package 63, Script 5), discusses several diseases that, like Rift Valley Fever, can be passed from animals to humans, and how people can protect themselves. You can find this script online, along with A guide for broadcasters to some important Livestock Diseases (Package 63, Script 1), which includes information on Rift Valley Fever and Foot and Mouth Disease.
