Public Health. Pathogen surveillance in animals.

Abstract

The current level of global vigilance for emerging infections is inadequate because surveillance of wild and domestic animals--the main source of emerging infections--shows large gaps and is poorly integrated with public health surveillance. In this Policy Forum, a group of authors from key national and international organizations urges the World Health Organization, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, and the World Organization for Animal Health to join forces to design and implement a global animal surveillance system for zoonotic pathogens. This system should provide opportunities to control such pathogens before they can affect human health, food supply, economies, or biodiversity.