An outbreak of disease among Bahraini cattle that causes chronic weakness and skin lesions poses no threat to humans, officials have said.

In a move to ease fears about the country's food supply, the Agriculture and Marine Resources Directorate told the Gulf Daily News (GDN), our sister publication, yesterday (May 14) that lumpy skin disease (LSD) was treatable and not a cause of concern.

It follows Monday's report that 12 cattle had been diagnosed with the disease.

“It is not the first time that LSD has been in Bahrain and usually we can manage its spread with vaccination,” a directorate official told the GDN.

“We don't put down the animals - instead we treat them, vaccinate the animals around them and we spray insecticide.

“We target the spreading mechanism, so we spray for flying insects to keep the areas insect-free.”

LSD is a pox disease of cattle that can cause depression, fever and nodules of varying size on the skin, mucous membranes and internal organs.

It is closely related to sheep and goat pox, from which it cannot be distinguished by routine diagnostic tests, but mainly affects cattle and zebus.

Biting insects spread the disease and vaccines are available, but there is no specific treatment, according to the European Commission Directorate General for Health and Food Safety '“ although secondary infections can be avoided through strong antibiotic therapy.

“We only have a few animals that have been diagnosed with the disease but we are keeping it from spreading by spraying,” said the directorate official.

“It should not affect the number of cattle in the country or the food supply.”

Other countries in Europe as well as Canada choose not to treat the disease and opt for 'disease eradication' and vaccination, he added. - TradeArabia News Service