The event is organised by the Scientific & Technical Office of REMESA (STOR - IZS of Sicily) and the National Reference Centre/FAO for rabies at Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie (IZSVe), in collaboration with the WOAH-FAO co-secretariat of REMESA (REseau MEditerranéen de Santé Animale - Mediterranean Animal Health Network) and with the support of the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH).

 

INTRODUCTION

Rabies is a viral disease that affects the central nervous systems of mammals, including humans, that is widespread almost worldwide. The virus is transmitted between mammals and spreads from an infected to a non-infected animal essentially through a biting event. The incubation period can vary from a few weeks to several months, but once clinical signs develop the disease is almost invariably fatal.

The infected animals do not show any characteristic signs of disease, nor are post-mortem gross lesions evident in dead individuals. Therefore, the diagnosis of rabies virus is laboratory-based through the detection of the viral antigen, viable virus or viral nucleic acids in a brain sample collected post-mortem. Veterinarians and animal control officers should handle potentially rabid animals with extreme caution and use personal protective equipment.

Dog-mediated rabies is currently the leading cause of rabies deaths in humans and is predominant in Africa and Asia, where there is a high proportion of unvaccinated free-roaming or stray dogs and an inadequate access to public health resources and preventative treatment. Indeed, approximately 80% of human cases occur in rural areas and over 40% of rabies deaths in children under 15 years of age. However, unlike many other diseases, dog-mediated rabies elimination is possible because all the necessary tools already exist.

In light of the “ZERO BY 30: the Global Strategic Plan to end human deaths from dog-mediated rabies by 2030”, developed in 2015 by the four partners (FAO, WHO, WOAH and GARC) of the United Against Rabies collaboration, countries should prioritize the following objectives:

  1. “To efficiently prevent and respond through effective use of vaccines, medicines, tools and technologies” to reduce the risk of human rabies;
  2. “To generate, innovate and measure impact through policies, guidance and governance”, harmonizing international strategies and capacity building, “and through reliable data to enable effective decision-making”;
  3. “To sustain commitment and resources to drive progress”.

 

OBJECTIVES

Aim of the two-day training course is to provide theoretical and practical skills on the current techniques for the surveillance, diagnosis and control of the disease. One half-day of the training will be entirely devoted to a follow-up hybrid conference on the activities undertaken in the Mediterranean region to reach the Zeroby30 goal of the Global Strategic Plan.