Sampling for Avian Influenza | CDC EID

EID Journal Home > Volume 16, Number 12–December 2010
Volume 16, Number 12–December 2010
Research
Environmental Sampling for Avian Influenza Virus A (H5N1) in Live-Bird Markets, Indonesia

Risa Indriani,1 Gina Samaan,1 Comments to Author Anita Gultom, Leo Loth, Sri Indryani, Rma Adjid, Ni Luh Putu Indi Dharmayanti, John Weaver, Elizabeth Mumford, Kamalini Lokuge, Paul M. Kelly, and Darminto
Author affiliations: Indonesian Research Center for Veterinary Science, Bogor, Indonesia (R. Indriani, R. Adjid, N.L.P.I. Dharmayanti, Darminto); The Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia (G. Samaan, K. Lokuge, P.M. Kelly); World Health Organization, Jakarta, Indonesia (G. Samaan); Ministry of Health, Jakarta (A. Gultom, S. Indryani); Food and Agriculture Organization, Dhaka, Bangladesh (L. Loth); Food and Agriculture Organization, Hanoi, Vietnam (J. Weaver); and World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland (E. Mumford)

Suggested citation for this article

Abstract
To identify environmental sites commonly contaminated by avian influenza virus A (H5N1) in live-bird markets in Indonesia, we investigated 83 markets in 3 provinces in Indonesia. At each market, samples were collected from up to 27 poultry-related sites to assess the extent of contamination. Samples were tested by using real-time reverse transcription–PCR and virus isolation. A questionnaire was used to ascertain types of birds in the market, general infrastructure, and work practices. Thirty-nine (47%) markets showed contamination with avian influenza virus in >1 of the sites sampled. Risk factors were slaughtering birds in the market and being located in West Java province. Protective factors included daily removal of waste and zoning that segregated poultry-related work flow areas. These results can aid in the design of evidence-based programs concerning environmental sanitation, food safety, and surveillance to reduce the risk for avian influenza virus A (H5N1) transmission in live-bird markets.

Food markets that offer both poultry meat and live birds either for sale or for slaughter are collectively referred to as live-bird markets (LBMs). LBMs are part of the supply chain and are essential for maintaining the health and nutritional status of rural and urban populations, especially in developing countries (1,2). However, LBMs provide optimal conditions for the zoonotic transfer and evolution of infectious disease pathogens because they provide major contact points between humans and live animals (3,4).

Studies in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, People's Republic of China; other areas of China; Indonesia; and the United States have shown that LBMs can harbor avian influenza viruses (AIVs), including highly pathogenic influenza virus A (H5N1), and have been associated with human infection (4–9). Continual movement of birds into, through, and out of markets provides opportunity for the introduction, entrenchment, and dissemination of AIVs. Most studies have focused on testing live birds rather than environmental sites in the LBMs (6,7,10). However, a study in New York, NY, that tested environmental sites for AIV (H7N2) found that virus could be isolated from samples from floors, walls, and drains from the poultry areas of LBMs (8). The study also found that despite the ongoing influx of infected birds into LBMs, the level of environmental contamination decreased with routine cleaning and disinfection. Another study in Hong Kong LBMs showed that AIV (H9N2) could be isolated at higher rates from poultry drinking water than from samples of bird fecal droppings (11). Environmental aspects of LBMs are needed for an avian influenza control program for 2 reasons. First, a contaminated environment can provide a continuing source of virus transmission, in which healthy birds coming into the market may become infected and persons working in or visiting the market may also be exposed. Second, ongoing surveillance programs in LBMs based on environmental sampling are more likely than those based on invasive bird testing to be acceptable to traders and stall vendors. Environmental sampling is also safer for public health officers and veterinary health officers than handling and sampling live birds that may be infected with AIV.

In this study, we aimed to identify the environmental sites commonly contaminated by AIV (H5N1) in LBMs in Indonesia. Identifying these sites is the first step in the design of evidence-based environmental sanitation, food safety, and surveillance programs to reduce the risk for virus transmission and to develop environmental surveillance programs to monitor LBM contamination status.

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Sampling for Avian Influenza | CDC EID

Suggested Citation for this Article

Indriani R, Samaan G, Gultom A, Loth L, Indryani S, Adjid R, et al. Environmental sampling for avian influenza virus A (H5N1) in live-bird markets, Indonesia. Emerg Infect Dis [serial on the Internet]. 2010 Dec [date cited]. http://www.cdc.gov/EID/content/16/12/1889.htm

DOI: 10.3201/eid1612.100402



1These authors contributed equally to this article.

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Gina Samaan, National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, College of Medicine, Biology and Environment, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 0200, Australia; email: ginasamaan@yahoo.com