Log in
Rabies is an infectious disease that kills at least 55,000 people annually, primarily in Asia and Africa, with infected dogs being the major source of infection in humans. In a recent rabies epidemic on the Indonesian island of Bali, between Dec 2008 and June 2011, over 130 human deaths occurred, because the actions of the local authorities were not sufficient to control the outbreak. Research undertaken at the University of Glasgow was instrumental in the development of an island-wide canine vaccination strategy between 2010 and 2013. These campaigns controlled the spread of rabies in dogs (villages reporting new cases) and reduced the incidence of human deaths by over 90% compared with the incidence before mass canine vaccination started, in late 2010. As of July 2013, Bali had gone 11 months without a human case of rabies. The research also contributed to advocacy, policy formulation and development of computer-based tools to support rabies control both within Bali and other developing countries.
The Ethiopian wolf is the most endangered carnivore in Africa. It is chiefly threatened by rabies outbreaks that occur every 5-10 years with a mortality rate of up to 77% in affected populations. Dr Claudio Sillero-Zubiri and colleagues have developed a novel low-coverage vaccination strategy, now at the heart of a strategic plan to protect this species from extinction. Containment of rabies through a cordon sanitaire protects these rare wolves beyond the initial outbreak, offering a potential model for wildlife disease management elsewhere, and significant socio-economic and health benefits for the communities living in and around wolf areas.
Research by G Favato of Kingston University established that it is cost-effective to vaccinate males against the HPV virus, overturning previous studies that had suggested such vaccination was not cost-effective.
This research was presented to the Italian Agency for Drug Approval (AIFA). As a result, AIFA changed its vaccination policy for HPV, removing its previous restriction of vaccination to females only and approving vaccination also for males.
The Italian regions of Emilia-Romagna and Sicily have now begun voluntary vaccination programmes for males under 26, with economic benefits amounting to €98.9 million. In addition, Emilia-Romagna has introduced a vaccination programme for HIV-infected males under 26, providing health benefits for a high-risk sub-population.