DEVELOPMENT OF A HIGH NUMBER, HIGH COVERAGE DOG RABIES VACCINATION PROGRAMME IN SRI LANKA

Abstract Background: Rabies is estimated to cause 59,000 deaths and economic losses of 8.6 billion USD every year. Despite several years of rabies surveillance and awareness programmes, increased availability of post-exposure prophylaxis vaccinations and dog population control, the disease still remains prevalent in Sri Lanka. This study reports the development and roll-out of a high number, high coverage canine rabies vaccination campaign in Sri Lanka, providing estimates for the vaccination coverage achieved, analysing the local dog demographics, and identifying barriers of attendance to static vaccination clinics. Methods: A mass dog vaccination campaign was undertaken in Negombo, Sri Lanka. The campaign was composed of static point and door-to-door vaccination stages, with a final survey of vaccination coverage. A large volume of data on the distribution, health, and signalment of vaccinated dogs was collected through a mobile phone application. A logistic regression model was developed to investigate which socio-spatial and dog-related factors influenced attendance of owners to static vaccination points. Results: The campaign vaccinated over 7,800 dogs achieving a vaccination coverage of 75.8%. A dog:human ratio of 1:17 was estimated. Most dogs were owned, and the dog population was mostly male, adult, and non-sterilized. Unawareness, unavailability and handling problems were the most common reasons given by owners to explain failure to attend a static vaccination point. The regression analysis showed that increasing distance to a static point, in addition to young age and poor health of the dog, were associated with a decrease in the likelihood of attendance to a static vaccination points. Conclusion: This study demonstrates the feasibility of high number, high coverage vaccination campaigns in Sri Lanka. The information on dog ecology and barriers of attendance to a static point vaccination clinic will facilitate development of future vaccination campaigns.

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Development of a high number, high coverage dog rabies vaccination programme in Sri Lanka.

10.21203/rs.2.12733/v3 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Carlos Sánchez Soriano ◽

Andrew D. Gibson ◽

Luke Gamble ◽

Jordana L. Burdon Bailey ◽

Samantha Green ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sri Lanka ◽

Vaccination Coverage ◽

Vaccination Campaign ◽

Economic Losses ◽

Post Exposure Prophylaxis ◽

High Coverage ◽

Male Adult ◽

Vaccination Campaigns ◽

Static Point ◽

Rabies Vaccination

Abstract Background: Rabies is estimated to cause 59,000 deaths and economic losses of 8.6 billion USD every year. Despite several years of rabies surveillance and awareness programmes, increased availability of post-exposure prophylaxis vaccinations and dog population control, the disease still remains prevalent in Sri Lanka. This study reports the development and roll-out of a high number, high coverage canine rabies vaccination campaign in Sri Lanka, providing estimates for the vaccination coverage achieved, analysing the local dog demographics, and identifying barriers of attendance to static vaccination clinics. Methods: A mass dog vaccination campaign was undertaken in Negombo, Sri Lanka. The campaign was composed of static point and door-to-door vaccination stages, with a final survey of vaccination coverage. A large volume of data on the distribution, health, and signalment of vaccinated dogs was collected through a mobile phone application. A logistic regression model was developed to investigate which socio-spatial and dog-related factors influenced attendance of owners to static vaccination points. Results: The campaign vaccinated over 7,800 dogs achieving a vaccination coverage of 75.8%. A dog:human ratio of 1:17 was estimated. Most dogs were owned, and the dog population was mostly male, adult, and non-sterilized. Unawareness, unavailability and handling problems were the most common reasons given by owners to explain failure to attend a static vaccination point. The regression analysis showed that increasing distance to a static point, in addition to young age and poor health of the dog, were associated with a decrease in the likelihood of attendance to a static vaccination points. Conclusion: This study demonstrates the feasibility of high number, high coverage vaccination campaigns in Sri Lanka. The information on dog ecology and barriers of attendance to a static point vaccination clinic will facilitate development of future vaccination campaigns.

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Development of a high number, high coverage dog rabies vaccination programme in Sri Lanka

BMC Infectious Diseases ◽

10.1186/s12879-019-4585-z ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 19 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Carlos Sánchez-Soriano ◽

Andrew D. Gibson ◽

Luke Gamble ◽

Jordana L. Burdon Bailey ◽

Samantha Green ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sri Lanka ◽

Vaccination Coverage ◽

Vaccination Campaign ◽

Economic Losses ◽

Post Exposure Prophylaxis ◽

High Coverage ◽

Male Adult ◽

Vaccination Campaigns ◽

Static Point ◽

Rabies Vaccination

Abstract Background Rabies is estimated to cause 59,000 deaths and economic losses of US$8.6 billion every year. Despite several years of rabies surveillance and awareness programmes, increased availability of post-exposure prophylaxis vaccinations and dog population control, the disease still remains prevalent in Sri Lanka. This study reports the roll-out of a high number, high coverage canine rabies vaccination campaign in Sri Lanka, providing estimates for the vaccination coverage achieved, analysing the local dog demographics, and identifying barriers of attendance to static vaccination clinics. Methods A mass dog vaccination campaign was undertaken in Negombo, Sri Lanka. The campaign was composed of static point and door-to-door vaccination stages, with a final survey of vaccination coverage. A large volume of data on the distribution, health, and signalment of vaccinated dogs was collected through a mobile phone application. A logistic regression model was developed to investigate which socio-spatial and dog-related factors influenced attendance of owners to static vaccination points. Results The campaign vaccinated over 7800 dogs achieving a vaccination coverage of 75.8%. A dog:human ratio of 1:17 was estimated. Most dogs were owned, and the dog population was mostly male, adult, and non-sterilized. Unawareness, unavailability and handling problems were the most common reasons given by owners to explain failure to attend a static vaccination point. The regression analysis showed that increasing distance to a static point, in addition to young age and poor health of the dog, were associated with a decrease in the likelihood of attendance to a static vaccination points. Conclusion This study demonstrates the feasibility of high number, high coverage vaccination campaigns in Sri Lanka. The information on dog ecology and barriers of attendance to static point vaccination clinics will facilitate development of future vaccination campaigns.

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Lessons Learned and Paths Forward for Rabies Dog Vaccination in Madagascar: A Case Study of Pilot Vaccination Campaigns in Moramanga District

Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease ◽

10.3390/tropicalmed6020048 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 6 (2) ◽

pp. 48

Author(s):

Caitlynn Filla ◽

Malavika Rajeev ◽

Zoavina Randriana ◽

Chantal Hanitriniana ◽

Radoniaina R. Rafaliarison ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Lessons Learned ◽

Post Exposure Prophylaxis ◽

High Coverage ◽

Canine Rabies ◽

Vaccination Strategies ◽

Context Specific ◽

Exposure Prophylaxis ◽

Vaccination Campaigns ◽

Static Point

Canine rabies causes an estimated 60,000 human deaths per year, but these deaths are preventable through post-exposure prophylaxis of people and vaccination of domestic dogs. Dog vaccination campaigns targeting 70% of the population are effective at interrupting transmission. Here, we report on lessons learned during pilot dog vaccination campaigns in the Moramanga District of Madagascar. We compare two different vaccination strategies: a volunteer-driven effort to vaccinate dogs in two communes using static point vaccination and continuous vaccination as part of routine veterinary services. We used dog age data from the campaigns to estimate key demographic parameters and to simulate different vaccination strategies. Overall, we found that dog vaccination was feasible and that most dogs were accessible to vaccination. The static-point campaign achieved higher coverage but required more resources and had a limited geographic scope compared to the continuous delivery campaign. Our modeling results suggest that targeting puppies through community-based vaccination efforts could improve coverage. We found that mass dog vaccination is feasible and can achieve high coverage in Madagascar; however, context-specific strategies and an investment in dog vaccination as a public good will be required to move the country towards elimination.

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A Novel Integrated and Labile eHealth System for Monitoring Dog Rabies Vaccination Campaigns

Vaccines ◽

10.3390/vaccines7030108 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 7 (3) ◽

pp. 108 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Andre Coetzer ◽

Terence P. Scott ◽

Khadija Noor ◽

Lambert F. Gwenhure ◽

Louis H. Nel

Keyword(s):

Capital City ◽

Data Logger ◽

Global Alliance ◽

Resource Limited Settings ◽

High Coverage ◽

Resource Limited ◽

First Case ◽

Vaccination Campaigns ◽

Rabies Vaccination

The elimination of canine rabies through the implementation of high coverage mass dog vaccination campaigns is a complex task, particularly in the resource-limited countries of the rabies endemic world. Here we demonstrated the feasibility of applying targeted rabies vaccination campaigns to deliver more impactful intervention campaigns in resource-limited settings using evidence and lessons learnt from other diseases. With the use of strategic rabies intervention programs, we demonstrate the noteworthy reduction of rabies cases in two very different African settings. The strategic intervention was most significantly aided by the use of a custom-developed vaccination tracking device (the Global Alliance for Rabies Control (GARC) Data Logger) and an integrated rabies surveillance system (the Rabies Epidemiological Bulletin). Our first case study, an island-wide strategic dog vaccination on Tanzania’s Unguja island, reduced the incidence of rabies by 71% in the first 16 months of implementation. In the second case study, a similar approach was applied in the metropolitan capital city of Zimbabwe and the incidence of rabies declined by 13% during the first 13 months of implementation. The methodologies and results presented here suggest that, in resource-limited settings, an optimal approach towards the elimination of dog rabies would revolve around strategic interventions, subject to the use of appropriate planning, surveillance, and vaccination tools.

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Wildlife and Bait Density Monitoring to Describe the Effectiveness of a Rabies Vaccination Program in Foxes

Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease ◽

10.3390/tropicalmed5010032 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

pp. 32

Author(s):

Paolo Tizzani ◽

Angela Fanelli ◽

Carsten Potzsch ◽

Joerg Henning ◽

Srdjan Šašić ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Red Fox ◽

Vaccination Campaign ◽

Oral Vaccination ◽

Density Data ◽

The Balkans ◽

Critical Areas ◽

Vaccination Campaigns ◽

Time Evaluation ◽

Rabies Vaccination ◽

Wildlife Reservoir

Fox rabies has been eliminated from vast areas of West and Central Europe, but cases still occur in the Balkans. Oral vaccination is an effective method for reducing the incidence of the disease in wildlife, but it requires monitoring if bait density is adequate for the density of the wildlife reservoir. We developed a methodology to evaluate the effectiveness of aerial vaccination campaigns conducted in Montenegro during autumn 2011 and spring 2012. The effectiveness of the vaccination campaign was assessed by (i) estimating the density of baits, (ii) estimating the distribution of the red fox, (iii) identifying critical areas of insufficient bait density by combining both variables. Although the two vaccination campaigns resulted in 45% and 47% of the country’s total area not reaching recommended density of 20 baits/km2, the consecutive delivery of both campaigns reduced these “gaps” to 6%. By combining bait and reservoir density data, we were able to show that bait density was lower than fox density in only 5% of Montenegro’s territory. The methodology described can be used for real-time evaluation of aerial vaccine delivery campaigns, to identify areas with insufficient bait densities.

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Implementation of high coverage mass rabies vaccination in rural Uganda using predominantly static point methodology

The Veterinary Journal ◽

10.1016/j.tvjl.2019.04.013 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 249 ◽

pp. 60-66 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

M.J. Evans ◽

J.L. Burdon Bailey ◽

F.E. Lohr ◽

W. Opira ◽

M. Migadde ◽

...

Keyword(s):

High Coverage ◽

Static Point ◽

Rabies Vaccination

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The urgency of resuming disrupted dog rabies vaccination campaigns: a modeling and cost-effectiveness analysis

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-021-92067-5 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Amber Kunkel ◽

Seonghye Jeon ◽

Haim C. Joseph ◽

Pierre Dilius ◽

Kelly Crowdis ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Cost Effectiveness ◽

Vaccination Campaign ◽

Cost Effective ◽

Fold Increase ◽

Surveillance Data ◽

Capital City ◽

Human Rabies ◽

Post Exposure Prophylaxis ◽

Program Costs ◽

Vaccination Campaigns

AbstractDog vaccination is a cost-effective approach to preventing human rabies deaths. In Haiti, the last nation-wide dog vaccination campaign occurred in 2018. We estimated the number of human lives that could be saved by resuming dog vaccination in 2021 compared to 2022 and compared the cost-effectiveness of these two scenarios. We modified a previously published rabies transmission and economic model to estimate trends in dog and human rabies cases in Haiti from 2005 to 2025, with varying assumptions about when dog vaccinations resume. We compared model outputs to surveillance data on human rabies deaths from 2005 to 2020 and animal rabies cases from 2018 to 2020. Model predictions and surveillance data both suggest a 5- to 8-fold increase in animal rabies cases occurred in Haiti’s capital city between Fall 2019 and Fall 2020. Restarting dog vaccination in Haiti in 2021 compared to 2022 could save 285 human lives and prevent 6541 human rabies exposures over a five-year period. It may also decrease program costs due to reduced need for human post-exposure prophylaxis. These results show that interruptions in dog vaccination campaigns before elimination is achieved can lead to significant human rabies epidemics if not promptly resumed.

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The urgency of resuming disrupted dog rabies vaccination campaigns: a modeling and cost-effectiveness analysis

10.1101/2021.04.24.21256032 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Amber Kunkel ◽

Seonghye Jeon ◽

Haim C Joseph ◽

Pierre Dilius ◽

Kelly Crowdis ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Cost Effectiveness ◽

Vaccination Campaign ◽

Fold Increase ◽

Surveillance Data ◽

Capital City ◽

Human Rabies ◽

Post Exposure Prophylaxis ◽

Vaccination Programs ◽

Program Costs ◽

Vaccination Campaigns

OBJECTIVE: Dog vaccination is a cost-effective approach to preventing human rabies deaths. In Haiti, the 2019 dog vaccination campaign did not include the capital city, and the 2020 campaign was cancelled because of COVID-19 lockdown restrictions and redirection of funds. We estimated the number of human lives that could be saved by resuming dog vaccination in 2021 compared to 2022 and compared the cost-effectiveness of these two scenarios. METHODS: We modified a previously published rabies transmission and economic model to estimate trends in dog and human rabies cases in Haiti from 2005-2025. We compared model outputs to surveillance data on human rabies deaths from 2005-2020 and animal rabies cases from 2018-2020. We then estimated the human health and cost implications of restarting dog vaccination programs in either 2021 or 2022. FINDINGS: Model predictions and animal surveillance data from Haiti both suggest a 5- to 8-fold increase in animal rabies cases has occurred in the capital city between Fall 2019 and Fall 2020. We estimate that restarting dog vaccination in Haiti in 2021 compared to 2022 could save 285 human lives and prevent 6,541 human rabies exposures over a five-year period and may decrease program costs due to reduced need for human post-exposure prophylaxis. CONCLUSIONS: A one-year delay in resuming dog vaccination in Haiti, from 2021 to 2022, could cost hundreds of lives over the next 5 years. Interruptions in dog vaccination campaigns before elimination is achieved can lead to significant human rabies epidemics if not promptly resumed.

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Domestic dog demographics and estimates of canine vaccination coverage in a rural area of Zambia for the elimination of rabies

PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases ◽

10.1371/journal.pntd.0009222 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 15 (4) ◽

pp. e0009222

Author(s):

Chiho Kaneko ◽

Ryosuke Omori ◽

Michihito Sasaki ◽

Chikako Kataoka-Nakamura ◽

Edgar Simulundu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Vaccination Coverage ◽

Vaccination Campaign ◽

Mass Vaccination ◽

Domestic Dog ◽

Human Rabies ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Canine Rabies ◽

Rabies Control ◽

Mass Vaccination Campaign ◽

Rabies Vaccination

Background An estimated 75% or more of the human rabies cases in Africa occur in rural settings, which underscores the importance of rabies control in these areas. Understanding dog demographics can help design strategies for rabies control and plan and conduct canine mass vaccination campaigns effectively in African countries. Methodology/Principal findings A cross-sectional survey was conducted to investigate domestic dog demographics in Kalambabakali, in the rural Mazabuka District of Zambia. The population of ownerless dogs and the total achievable vaccination coverage among the total dog population was estimated using the capture-recapture-based Bayesian model by conducting a canine mass vaccination campaign. This study revealed that 29% of the domestic dog population was under one year old, and 57.7% of those were under three months old and thus were not eligible for the canine rabies vaccination in Zambia. The population growth was estimated at 15% per annum based on the cross-sectional household survey. The population of ownerless dogs was estimated to be small, with an ownerless-to-owned-dog ratio of 0.01–0.06 in the target zones. The achieved overall vaccination coverage from the first mass vaccination was estimated 19.8–51.6%. This low coverage was principally attributed to the owners’ lack of information, unavailability, and dog-handling difficulties. The follow-up mass vaccination campaign achieved an overall coverage of 54.8–76.2%. Conclusions/Significance This paper indicates the potential for controlling canine rabies through mass vaccination in rural Zambia. Rabies education and responsible dog ownership are required to achieve high and sustainable vaccination coverage. Our findings also propose including puppies below three months old in the target population for rabies vaccination and emphasize that securing an annual enforcement of canine mass vaccination that reaches 70% coverage in the dog population is necessary to maintain protective herd immunity.

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