3/7/2023: 

Publication: Effectiveness of the Leptospira Hardjo Control Programme and Detection of New Infections in Dairy Cattle in The Netherlands
Recently Katrien van den Brink, veterinarian ruminant health at Royal GD, published an article in the journal Animals on the effectiveness of the Royal GD Leptospirosis Control Programme for dairy cattle. 

This publication is the result of a great collaboration between Royal GD’s Departments of Cattle Health, Epidemiology and Research and Development. Katrien’s main focus areas within Royal GD are infectious diseases (Leptospirosis, IBR & BVD), disease prevention & biosecurity.

Publication’s summary
Leptospirosis in cattle is a zoonotic bacterial disease for which participation in a control programme is mandatory for dairy herds in the Netherlands. Nearly all dairy herds have an L. Hardjo-free status, and only sporadic cases of this disease occur on dairy farms. In this study, the effectiveness of the programme for early detection of new L. Hardjo infections between 2017 and 2021 were evaluated. During the analysed period, a suspected infection was detected 144 times in 120 dairy herds. Of these 144 introductions, only 26 lead to within-herd transmission of Leptospirosis. The main cause of the introduction of the disease was the purchase of cattle from herds without an L. Hardjo-free status. Additionally, there were no cases where the infection seemed to have spread locally. It was, therefore, concluded that the control programme was highly effective in the early detection and subsequent control of new infections.

Click here to read the complete article. 

Click here to read more about Katrien van den Brinks work at Royal GD.