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FAQs
- What is the difference between CSF and ASF?
The two diseases are caused by completely different and unrelated viruses; vertical and sexual transmission of the virus have been demonstrated for CSF virus but not for ASF; there are effective vaccines to control CSF but no vaccine exists for ASF.
- Can CSF affect livestock species other than pigs?
Pigs are the only target species for CSF.
- Is CSF a zoonosis?
CSF is not a zoonosis so people are not affected.
- Since there are vaccines, why are all the pigs killed when there is an outbreak of CSF?
Whether or not all the pigs are killed depends on national or regional policy. In the EU, for example, vaccination is not permitted for diseases that have been eradicated so all infected and in-contact herds have to be killed. The reason for a policy of no vaccination is that exporting countries want to regain free status as quickly as possible in order to be able recover their export markets. Although there are now marker vaccines that make it possible to distinguish between pigs that have been vaccinated and pigs that were naturally infected, fears that vaccination could mask infection and prolong the course of the disease have so far prevented a change in policy.
- Are many countries in Africa infected with CSF?
At present as far as is known the only country in the African region that is infected with CSF is Madagascar.
- Is CSF easy to diagnose?
Field diagnosis of CSF is difficult because the clinical signs and pathological lesions are similar to those of many other diseases, including ASF, but there are good laboratory tests that enable a rapid diagnosis to be made so in any suspected case samples should be sent to a capable laboratory as soon as possible for confirmation.
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