Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Health risks of rare zoonotic diseases in the UK
By Halsby, K D et al.·Published in Zoonoses and public health·2014·Zoonotic and Emerging Infections Department, United Kingdom·View original on PubMed →
PetCaseFinder translated the abstract of this peer-reviewed paper into plain English so pet owners can read it. We do not publish original research — every detail traces back to the citation above. How we work →
Original publication title: The health burden of orphan zoonotic disease in the United Kingdom, 2005-2009.
Plain-English summary
This article discusses lesser-known diseases that can be passed from animals to humans, known as orphan zoonotic diseases, and their impact on health in the UK from 2005 to 2009. While some of these diseases, like hydatid disease, are rare, others, such as toxoplasmosis, affect many people each year. Although the overall number of deaths from these diseases is low, most of the fatalities reported were due to toxoplasmosis. The article highlights that many cases are likely not reported or diagnosed, suggesting a need for more research to better understand how common these infections really are. It emphasizes the importance of studies that involve both human and veterinary health to improve our knowledge of these diseases.
Abstract
'Orphan' zoonotic diseases attract disproportionately low scientific and public health attention for the impact that they can have. This article pulls together information on their health burden in the UK from routine and enhanced data sources. These diseases are heterogeneous in nature; some have very low case numbers (e.g. hydatid disease), whilst others affect hundreds of patients each year (e.g. toxoplasmosis). The number of deaths attributed to orphan zoonoses is relatively low, and the majority recorded in this article were caused by toxoplasmosis. There is a clear issue of under-reporting and under-diagnosis in the data sets presented, and further work should be carried out to obtain more accurate estimates of the prevalence of zoonotic infections. Joint human and veterinary studies are especially important for these diseases.
Find similar cases for your pet
PetCaseFinder finds other peer-reviewed reports of pets with the same symptoms, plus a plain-English summary of what was tried across them.
Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23445408/