The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned in its latest assessment that the anthrax outbreak declared in Zambia on November 1 could spread rapidly throughout the country and neighboring countries if an emergency plan is not put in place immediately.

According to the WHO balance sheet, citing Zambian health authorities, from the declaration of the outbreak to the November 20, 2023have been four confirmed deaths and 684 suspected cases.

He risk to human health is highwarns the WHO, given the multiple exposures of the known population when handling the carcasses of animals that had died suddenly and when eating meat from infected animals, with the subsequent associated cutaneous and gastrointestinal anthrax.

In its latest bulletin, the WHO warns that this outbreak has an unprecedented scope because it affects nine of the country’s ten provinces and there is a “considerably high” risk of it crossing borders given the frequent movement of animals and people, particularly Angola, Botswana, DRC, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Tanzania, Uganda and Zimbabwe.

Previous outbreaks were limited to the northwestern and western provinces, with sporadic cases over the years. Of note, Zambia reported anthrax outbreaks in both humans and animals in the Western Province in 2017 and in the Eastern Province in 2016 and 2011.

What is anthrax

Anthrax is a serious infectious disease caused by a gram-positive, bacilliform bacteria known as Bacillus anthracis. This bacteria is found in soil and commonly affects pets and wild animals around the world. Furthermore, the disease generally causes symptoms such as fever and chills and depending on the type of infection, either pulmonary or gastrointestinal, can manifest itself in different ways. In the case of pulmonary, it can cause dizziness, chest discomfort or difficulty breathing, while gastrointestinal causes sore throat, pain when swallowing or even hoarseness, among others.