On 09/09/2000, I wrote this text for a discussion group among veterinarians. What would we say about this subject today?
Of something around 1500 infectious diseases cataloged by the World Health Organization, 200 are Zoonoses (diseases communicable from animals to humans).
The epizootiological and epidemiological behavior of certain newly emerging diseases, such as those caused by the Ebola virus, the Australian equine Morbillivirus, the Hantaviruses and the “Prions”, has generated some alarm in World Public Health.
However, the inconstant level of seriousness of action of the Health Surveillance, in the different levels of contingency, national, state and municipal, is what generates the determining factor of the appearance of epidemics or epizootics.
In a world scenario where globalization of activities merely focused on the commercial aspects of a devouring and elitist capitalism is discussed, it is up to us to scrutinize the stertorous yearnings of a sick and anemic Public Health in the Third World.
National health and agricultural defense policies, luxurious and extravagant in essence, created in a laboratory, disconnected from basic structuring actions aimed at collective health, are nothing more than technocratic premises and philosophical guidelines, totally divergent from the real peripheral contexts of “Africa”, “India” and “Brazil” with its droughts and mangroves, postcards of world misery.
Partnerships are created (G-7, “Merco of this, Merco of that”) with surrealist objectives, with the sole beneficiaries of powerful merchants, holders of maximized structures in “Markets” of capitalist life.
In this enigmatic context, Health (animal health and human health) is lacking and Zoonosis (anthropozoonosis and zooanthroponosis) begins to exceed.
And where are the health professionals who promised to always obey, in the exercise of their noble profession, the postulates of science, honor and charity?
Certainly, lost in dreams and ideals of mercantile practices, devoid of the basic principle of love for others, which should be embedded in their professional duties.
Many within the area of Public Health, create slogans and raise theoretical socialist flags. Being a Socialist is not preaching Marxism, communism and other “ideological aphorisms”, but following the simplicity of what is written in the biblical reference of John 13.34-35.
We need to pay more attention to World Public Health and to study and evaluate daily the progress of these Zoonoses, which seem to threaten the evolution of medical science human resources with greater speed and better strategy.
My question is:
In your opinion, why are zoonoses gaining greater repercussion in current public health? Has medical science awakened to the real problem? Was it driven by conflicts of interest? Or did it just reduce some bias in your and hypotheses?
Zoonoses are a growing concern due to a number of variables, including their frequently unique and unpredictable nature, their capacity to appear anywhere and spread quickly throughout the world, and their significant financial impact on a variety of dissimilar industries, as well as economic losses due to medical care and absence from work due to illness.
Against a constant background of recognised infections, epidemics of new and old infectious diseases periodically emerge, greatly magnifying the global burden of emerging and re-emerging diseases. The emergence/re-emergence of these diseases / zoonotic diseasesis related to multifaceted factors, such as viral recombination and mutation, leading to more infectious and adaptive strains, industrialization and urbanization, and human activities like deforestation creating a more permissive environment for vector-host interaction. A better knowledge of the causes and consequences of certain human activities, lifestyles, and behaviours in ecosystems is crucial for a rigorous interpretation of disease dynamics and to drive public policies This article highlights the factors associated with emergence and re-emergence and in turn the importance and implementation of one health approach.
Zoonoses caused by multiple etiologic agents, remain a constant threat to human and animal health. Emergence of several zoonotic diseases attracted the attention of national and international organization. In my opinion, further comprehensive and systematic studies on the reservoirs, epidemiology, diagnostics, chemotherapeutic agents, and vaccinology may be rewarding.
We have published over 200 papers on the importance of zoonoses. All these publications are available at the Research Gate and other sites.
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