One-health approach: A best possible way to control rabies

Krishna Prasad Acharya; Narayan Acharya; Sarita Phuyal; Mukul Upadhyaya; Steven Lasee

doi:10.1016/j.onehlt.2020.100161

One-health approach: A best possible way to control rabies

One Health. 2020 Aug 25:10:100161. doi: 10.1016/j.onehlt.2020.100161. eCollection 2020 Dec.

Authors

Krishna Prasad Acharya¹, Narayan Acharya², Sarita Phuyal³, Mukul Upadhyaya⁴, Steven Lasee²

Affiliations

¹ Animal Quarantine Office (AQO), Budhanilkantha, Kathmandu, Nepal.
² The Institute of Environmental and Human Health, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX, USA.
³ Central Referral Veterinary Hospital, Tripureshwar, Kathmandu, Nepal.
⁴ Veterinary Epidemiology Section (VES), Department of Livestock Services (DLS), Tripureshwar, Kathmandu, Nepal.

Abstract

More than 75% of emerging infectious diseases and 60% of known human infectious diseases are transmitted from animals. Among these zoonoses, rabies is of utmost public health significance due to its lethality. The multi-faceted nature of zoonotic disease complicates control and prevention and thus, a multi-sectoral One Health Approach could be a better strategy to cope with rabies. Up until now, rabies prevention and control programs are conducted utilizing mass vaccination of domestic and community dogs and cats, and mass awareness programs. However, the burden of rabies has not been reduced as these approaches have failed to include all stakeholders (human, animal, and environmental health sectors) in disease management programs. The aim of this review is to highlight why and how One Health Approach would be the most effective way to control rabies in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) like Nepal.

Keywords: One health; Prevention; Rabies; Zoonoses.

Publication types

Review