The AASV’s Foreign Animal Disease Committee, chaired by Dr. Mike Senn, met in Orlando during the association’s Annual Meeting. The members of the committee discussed a number of issues pertinent to addressing the threat of an introduction of a foreign animal disease (FAD) into the U.S. swine herd. Some of the committee’s activities are highlighted below.
Much of the discussion during its March 2nd meeting centered on USDA’s recent implementation of a Classical Swine Fever (CSF) surveillance program. As part of its outreach effort, the USDA entered into a cooperative agreement with AASV to provide educational materials for veterinarians and veterinary students. As part of this effort, the committee put together a CSF brochure which was distributed to AASV members attending the Annual Meeting.
In addition, the committee also reviewed an educational piece ("got Tonsil?") designed to inform veterinarians about the importance of routinely submitting tonsil as part of a diagnostic submission. The USDA’s surveillance program uses the tonsil as a key screening tool to detect the presence of the CSF virus. Veterinarians submitting tonsil to the diagnostic lab can receive a $50 credit towards laboratory diagnostics when the tonsils are screened for CSF.
The committee also expressed concern regarding USDA swine specific plans for foreign animal disease response. Recent changes in leadership within USDA’s Emergency Programs (EP) division and the reassignment of a number of key personnel provides an opportunity for the AASV FAD committee to open a dialogue with USDA to discuss the need for additional swine specific planning.
The members present also discussed planning for the FAD Workshop during the 2008 Annual Meeting. Dr. Patrick Webb will chair the pre-conference session and the committee is considering conducting a table-top exercise as part of the workshop.
Finally, the committee welcomed Drs. Barry Pittman and Sandy Amass as new committee members. A complete summary of the committee meeting is available on the FAD committee webpage.