Spain declared free of serotype 8 of Bluetongue virus

Almudena Sánchez Matamoros & José Manuel Sánchez-Vizcaíno
January 16th, 2013. SUAT-UCM

On 15th January 2013, Spain has proceeded to declared itself free of serotype 8 of bluetongue virus, since the region of Campo de Gibraltar (Cadiz) satisfy the health requirements to achieve this health status. This fact has been achieved through proper control and eradication strategy based on vaccination and control of animal movements.

The serotype 8 of the bluetongue virus appeared for the first time in Spain in January 2008. The system of disease surveillance implemented in Spain allowed the early detection the entry of new serotype, and the implementation of rapid and effective control measures based on vaccination and movement control, achieved a limited spread.

The restriction zones of Spain as of January 2013 are: Canary and Balearic Island are considered free of disease; Spain mainland would be considered restriction zone for serotype 1 and four provinces in southern Spain also have this category for serotype 4.

 

Fig. 6: Bluetongue restriction zones in Spain as of January 2013
Source: Ministerio de Agricultura, Alimentacion y Medio Ambiente (MAGRAMA), 2013

This advance in the fight against BTV relaxes restrictions on exports of cattle, sheep and goats from Spain. Highlight that currently in Europe only the islands of Corsica (France) and Sardinia (Italy) remain as restricted area for serotype 8.

Links: RASVE