KUCHING: Don’t blame it only on the pigs! The Japanese Encephalitis (JE) virus can be spread through any animal including domesticated ones.
This advice came from State Health director Datu Dr Zulkifli Jantan, who said there has been a misconception that JE is only spread through pigs and that only those staying near pig farm areas face the threat of the disease which has so far caused four deaths in Malaysia.
“It is a misconception that JE is spread only through pigs. All animals can carry the virus.
“In fact, it can be spread through all animals including domestic animals such as cats, dogs as well as chickens and ducks,” he said.
He explained that this has been one of the reasons the Health Department has no plan to go to any pig farm to vaccinate the workers.
“Presently, we also don’t have programmes to vaccinate pig farm workers though they are considered a slightly higher risk group. They will only be vaccinated if there is an outbreak,” Dr Zulkifli told The Borneo Post yesterday.
He explained that vaccinating pig farm workers was not the way to manage the disease since pigs were not the only agents that carry the virus.
Though Sarawak is the only state in Malaysia which offers vaccination to infants to prevent the spread of JE, presently it still tops the number of cases in the country.
Out of the 17 cases nationwide, eight were in Sarawak, four in Sabah, three in Penang and one each in Selangor and Kelantan.
And out of the 17 cases, four deaths were reported in Sabah, Selangor and Kelantan.
Dr Zulkifli explained that vaccination for JE among infants started as early as 2001 as before that, Sarawak was experiencing a high number of cases which came to hundreds.
“Because we had high number of cases, we applied for vaccination which was approved by the federal government,” he said.
He said vaccination had worked effectively as the number of JE cases, compared to 2001 and before, had dropped tremendously.
The eight cases in Sarawak might be due to incomplete vaccination or no vaccination at all if the patients were older.
Meanwhile, secretary of Sarawak Livestock Breeders’ Association Dr Ng Siew Thiam said the eight cases did not happen within or near commercial pig farms.
Dr Ng, who is a trained veterinary, said the recent cases had not affected the pork market as demand for pork remained the same.
To protect their workers, Dr Ng said some pig farm owners had got their workers vaccinated.
On Pasir Puteh Livestock Farming Area (LFA) which was built to cater for the 72 licensed pig farmers in Kuching and Kota Samarahan area, Dr Ng said so far two farmers had moved in while six more were about to move.
Pasir Puteh LFA is situated in Simunjan, about 120 km from Kuching.