Abstract

ACEVEDO, Ana María; HINOJOSA, Yoandry; RELOVA, Damarys  and  PERERA, Carmen Laura. Bluetongue virus: a known virus, a current threat. Rev Salud Anim. [online]. 2016, vol.38, n.1, pp.52-59. ISSN 0253-570X.

Bluetongue is a non-contagious acute viral disease affecting ruminants. It is a disease of great clinical importance for the physical deterioration and the long convalescence that it causes and, from the economic point of view, for the colossal production losses and prevention and control expenses. It is highly feared in spite of being innocuous for man and of only medium mortality. Bluetongue virus spreads from animal to animal by biting insects of the genus Culicoides and this is the reason for the disease being more prevalent in the geographic areas where climate conditions are favorable for the insect development. The disease was described in detail in early 1900, and at present, is one of the main concerns in animal health, being studied in order to clarify its epidemiology and pathogenesis and to control its spreading. In this review, an attempt has been made to summarize some aspects of the disease related to its history, economic importance and etiological agent, the viral genome organization, the disease epidemiology and distribution, its clinical signs and lesions, as well as its diagnosis.

Keywords : Bluetongue; bluetongue virus; epidemiology; clinical signs; diagnosis.

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