According to the report of the Center for Disease Control of Dien Bien province, from May 5 to 30, in Tua Chua district (Dien Bien), 3 outbreaks of cutaneous anthrax were recorded with 13 cases in Muong Bang commune (1 outbreak), Xa Nhe commune (2 outbreaks), currently no deaths have been recorded. All cases have an epidemiological history related to slaughtering and eating buffalo and cow meat.
According to the Ministry of Health , anthrax is classified as group B in the Law on Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases. This is an acute infectious disease that usually damages the skin, rarely causing damage to the mouth, throat, lower respiratory tract, mediastinum or digestive system.
One of the symptoms of anthrax is a black lesion on the skin.
In the skin form, the infected skin first appears itchy, then leads to lesions, papules, blisters and 2-4 days later develops into black ulcers. Around the ulcer there is often mild to severe edema and spreads very widely, sometimes with secondary small blisters. The ulcer is usually painless, if there is pain it is due to edema or secondary infection. The head, arms and hands are the most commonly damaged areas.
The ulcer may be mistaken for dermatitis. Untreated infection may spread to the regional lymph nodes and into the bloodstream, causing sepsis and brain damage.
The mortality rate for untreated cutaneous anthrax is 5–20%. With effective antibiotic treatment, death is rare.
The disease is transmitted through contact with tissues of animals (cattle, sheep, goats, horses, pigs and other livestock) that have died of anthrax; through hair, skin, bones or products made from these materials such as drums, brushes, etc. Anthrax is also transmitted through soil contaminated by infected animals.
Pulmonary anthrax is caused by inhalation of bacterial spores in the leather, wool, and bone processing industries. Intestinal and oropharyngeal anthrax are caused by eating contaminated meat. There is no evidence of transmission of anthrax from infected animal milk.
To proactively prevent anthrax transmission from animals to humans, the Department of Preventive Medicine (Ministry of Health) on June 2 sent Official Dispatch No. 616/DP-DT requesting the Director of the Department of Health of Dien Bien province to direct units in the area to closely monitor the health of those involved in slaughtering and using the same source of buffalo and beef as the above cases and those in close contact with the cases in order to prevent and treat promptly; strengthen surveillance, early detection of suspected cases of anthrax; handle the environment in the epidemic area according to regulations.
The Ministry of Health recommends that people do not slaughter or use food from sick or dead buffalo, cows, or horses of unknown origin.
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