Structural equation models to estimate risk of infection and tolerance to bovine mastitis.

in Genetics, Selection, Evolution [=GSE] (2013)

Risk assessment for furan contamination through the food chain in Belgian children

in Food Additives & Contaminants (2012), 29(8), 1219-1229

Young, old, pregnant and immuno-compromised persons are of great concern for risk assessors as they represent the sub-populations most at risk. The present paper focuses on risk assessment linked to furan ... [more ▼]

Young, old, pregnant and immuno-compromised persons are of great concern for risk assessors as they represent the sub-populations most at risk. The present paper focuses on risk assessment linked to furan exposure in children. Only the Belgian population was considered because individual contamination and consumption data that are required for accurate risk assessment were available for Belgian children only. Two risk assessment approaches, so called deterministic and probabilistic, were applied and their results were compared for the estimation of the daily intake. A significant difference between the average Estimated Daily Intake (EDI) was underlined between the deterministic (419 ng * (kgb.w. * day)-1) and the probabilistic (583 ng * (kgb.w. * day)-1) approaches, which results from the mathematical treatment of the null consumption and contamination data. The risk was characterized by two ways: (1) the classical approach by comparison of the EDI to a reference dose (RfDchronic-oral) and (2) the most recent approach, namely the Margin of Exposure (MoE) approach. Both reached similar conclusions: the risk level is not of a major concern, but is neither negligible. In the first approach, only 2.7% or 6.6% (respectively in the deterministic and in the probabilistic way) of the studied population presented an EDI above the RfDchronic-oral. In the second approach, the percentage of children displaying a MoE above 10,000 and below 100 is 3% - 0% and 20% - 0.01% in the deterministic and probabilistic modes respectively. In addition, children were compared to adults and significant differences between the contamination patterns were highlighted. Whilst major contamination was linked to coffee consumption in adults (55%), no item predominantly contributed to the contamination in children. The most important were soups (19%), dairy products (17%), pasta and rice (11%), fruit and potatoes (9% each). [less ▲]

Risk assessment of Belgian adults for furan contamination through the food chain

in Food Additives & Contaminants (2012), 29(3), 345-353

Risk assessment is an interdisciplinary process used to quantify the risk linked to a hazard. In the present paper it is applied to quantify the risk linked to furan ingestion through the food chain for ... [more ▼]

Risk assessment is an interdisciplinary process used to quantify the risk linked to a hazard. In the present paper it is applied to quantify the risk linked to furan ingestion through the food chain for the Belgian adult population. Two approaches, deterministic and probabilistic, were carried out in parallel. The deterministic method relied on a case study, whereas the probabilistic approach involved statistical distributions of contamination and consumption data to calculate a statistical distribution of the daily intake. First, the deterministic method revealed a low estimated daily intake (EDI) for the average population (380 ng*(kgbw*day)–1) and a huge contribution of coffee consumption to the EDI (55%). Increasing or decreasing the daily coffee consumption by one cup can affect the EDI by about 22%. Afterwards, the probabilistic approach showed that the average population has a low EDI (494 ng*(kgbw*day) 1), and that high contamination levels were only registered in a small proportion of the population. Finally, a comparison of the RfDchronic oral showed that less than 10% of the Belgian population had an EDI above the reference dose proposed by the USEPA; the majority of the population had an EDI 20% below the reference dose. The margin of exposure (MoE) approach indicated that the level of risk related to furan intake through ingestion is low, with a MoE>10,000 for more than 10% of the population and no result < 100. [less ▲]

Apparent prevalence of antibodies to Coxiella burnetii (Q fever) in bulk tank milk from dairy herds in southern Belgium

in Veterinary Journal (2012), 192(3), 529-531

Instruments de gestion économique des crises sanitaires touchant les animaux de production en Europe

in Revue Scientifique et Technique / Office International des Epizooties = Revista Cientifica y Tecnica / Officina Internacional de Epizootias = Scientific and Technical Review / International Office of Epizootics (2011), 30(3), 683-701

The importance of animal health crises has considerably increased over the last few years. When a crisis occurs, farmers can receive financial support through various public, private and mixed ... [more ▼]

The importance of animal health crises has considerably increased over the last few years. When a crisis occurs, farmers can receive financial support through various public, private and mixed compensation schemes. Economic losses resulting from diseases may be direct and indirect. If a disease is covered by European Union regulations then countries have a legal obligation to partly compensate farmers for direct losses, either directly through the national budget, or through a specific fund. The European Veterinary Fund also cofinances these losses. Only a few countries provide compensation for indirect losses. The private insurance sector also provides protection against some direct and indirect losses but the risks covered are variable. To encourage farmers to subscribe to this kind of insurance, some public authorities provide subsidies to help pay the premium. Insurance companies do not generally cover the risks linked to contagious diseases, but some companies do extend cover to include this type of risk. Several alternatives, such as mutual funds, are available to improve risk coverage. There is a lack of harmonisation among the various compensation schemes of different countries. Public authorities cannot provide full compensation, but mutual funds and private insurance companies are alternatives that should be further investigated and their use should be extended to other countries. A classification of diseases would harmonise the situation at the European level. [less ▲]

Monitoring of the intra-dermal tuberculosis skin test performed by Belgian field practitioners

in Research in Veterinary Science (2011)

The present study aimed to monitor skin test practices as performed by veterinarian field practitioners in Belgium. For this purpose, an anonymous postal questionnaire was elaborated and dispatched to ... [more ▼]

The present study aimed to monitor skin test practices as performed by veterinarian field practitioners in Belgium. For this purpose, an anonymous postal questionnaire was elaborated and dispatched to veterinarians involved in bovine tuberculosis detection. The questionnaire included items focusing on the skin test performance. International experts in the field of bovine tuberculosis were asked to fill the questionnaire and a scoring scale was built as follows: 0='ideal' answer, 1=acceptable answer, whereas 2=unacceptable answer. Furthermore, experts were asked to rank the questionnaire's items according to their possible impact on the risk of not detecting reactors. A global score was further calculated for each participant and a comparison of practices was carried out between the two regions of the country, i.e. Wallonia and Flanders. Significant differences were observed between both regions, a harmonization at the country level is thus essential. No veterinarian summed a null score, corresponding to the ideal skin test procedure, which suggests that skin-testing is far from being performed correctly. Field practitioners need to be sensitized to the importance of correctly performing the test. The authors recommend the questionnaire is suitable for application in other countries or regions [less ▲]

Assessment methodology of the intradermal tuberculosis skin test performed in cattle by field practitioners

Poster (2010)

Identification and Ranking of risk factors for somatic cell count economic penalty in 349 southern Belgium dairy farms

in Maillard, R.; Navetat, H. (Eds.) European buiatrics forum 2009 (2009, December 02)

In Belgium, the main economic penalty accounted for bovine milk quality is the bulk milk somatic cell count geometric mean over 3 months reaching more than 400,000 cells/ml. Yet, it is still difficult to ... [more ▼]

In Belgium, the main economic penalty accounted for bovine milk quality is the bulk milk somatic cell count geometric mean over 3 months reaching more than 400,000 cells/ml. Yet, it is still difficult to make progress on udder health and milk quality because regional risks related to endemic farming practices are not broadly known. Hence, a first step in understanding specific udder health risks associated with herd management has to be a broad ecopathological survey. A random stratified sample of 349 dairy farms, representing 25% of producers registered for performance recording, was selected with a total of 16,000 cows. Thorough audits recording 400 farming practices were made in each farm by 2 different surveyors during milking. The practices were recorded across four categories: Herd structure, Housing, Milking practices and Herd Management (including Nutrition). Our chosen variable was the geometric mean of the herd composite somatic cell count from the last three months compared to the 400,000 cells/ml European threshold. The sample had a mean somatic cell count of 287,000 cells/ml following a normal distribution between 73,000 and 807,000 cells/ml. From 19 risk indicators identified through univariate logistic analysis (p<0.15), half were related to milking practices and 5 were underlined by significant odds-ratios (OR) found through multivariate logistic analysis (p<0.05). Therefore, it was found that cubicle housing had the least risk (OR= 0.59 compared with tightened stalls, OR= 0.42 compared with straw stalls); Presence of a calving pen (OR= 0.40), use of post-dipping (OR= 0.50) had a positive impact; whereas pre-dip had a negative impact in our study (OR= 3) though it was not clear if this routine was performed correctly. Stripping also had a bad impact on milk quality whether it was systematic (OR = 1.90) or occasional (OR = 2.43). It was also found that farms with poor milking liner hygiene had more trouble (OR = 2.34). The results were comparable to other ecopathological studies such as northern and southern American and European studies. This study is a prerequisite in operational veterinary advice in southern Belgium dairy farms, because it provides a cross-sectional study of dairy practices and states on major epidemiological risk factors in dairy management for this region. [less ▲]

Classification of worldwide bovine tuberculosis risk factors in cattle: a stratified approach.

in Veterinary Research (2009), 40(5), 50

The worldwide status of bovine tuberculosis (bTB) as a zoonosis remains of great concern. This article reviews the main risk factors for bTB in cattle based on a three-level classification: animal, herd ... [more ▼]

The worldwide status of bovine tuberculosis (bTB) as a zoonosis remains of great concern. This article reviews the main risk factors for bTB in cattle based on a three-level classification: animal, herd and region/country level. A distinction is also made, whenever possible, between situations in developed and developing countries as the difference of context might have consequences in terms of risk of bTB. Recommendations are suggested to animal health professionals and scientists directly involved in the control and prevention of bTB in cattle. The determination of Millennium Development Goals for bTB is proposed to improve the control/eradication of the disease worldwide. [less ▲]

Risk assessment of the re-emergence of bovine brucellosis/tuberculosis

in Emerging animal diseases: from science to policy (2008)