Foot and Mouth Disease
Foot and Mouth Disease
Profile
Foot and mouth disease (FMD) is a highly contagious viral disease in cattle, buffalo, pigs, goats, sheep and other cloven-hoofed animals. The occurrence of FMD has serious consequences for the countries affected. Wild cloven-hoofed animals such as deer, antelopes, wild boar, giraffes and camels can also become infected. Horses are not susceptible to FMD; the virus poses no danger to humans.
Occurrence
The foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) is found almost everywhere in the world; only New Zealand has so far not recorded any outbreaks of FMD. The disease is endemic in Africa, Asia, the Middle East and parts of South America. Sporadic outbreaks can occur in other regions: for example, FMD has already occurred twice in the UK in the 21st century (2001 to 2002 and 2007). In 2011, Bulgaria was also affected by an FMD outbreak. In 2025, there were FMD outbreaks in quick succession in Germany, Hungary and Slovakia (see situation in Europe)
In Austria, despite extensive testing, there was no evidence of the disease being introduced. Livestock farmers are nevertheless urged to pay closer attention to biosecurity measures.
Symptomatology
General symptoms in all affected animal species are blistering (aphthae) in the mouth area, on the udder and on the claws; fever (40-42 °C), pain, apathy, loss of appetite, lameness and a decline in milk yield. Morbidity can reach 100 %. The death rate in adult animals is usually low (up to 5 %), in young calves, lambs and piglets it can be 20 % or more.
While cattle and pigs usually show clear symptoms of the disease (main symptom in cattle: smacking and foaming at the mouth; main symptom in pigs: lameness or increased lying down), the symptoms in sheep and goats can be significantly less severe and can also be overlooked!
Situation in Austria
The last outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in Austria was in 1981. Foot-and-mouth disease is a notifiable animal disease. If an outbreak is suspected, the official veterinarian must immediately impose a movement ban and initiate an investigation. Cases involving individual animals showing symptoms suggestive of FMD (usually skin lesions), on the other hand, are quickly investigated through exclusionary tests without the need for a farm closure. Nevertheless, this must also be commissioned via the official veterinarian.
Specialized information
FMDV is a non-enveloped RNA virus belonging to the genus Aphtovirus of the family Picornaviridae with currently a total of 7 serotypes, with numerous subtypes within each serotype. Historically, the 7 serotypes are designated A for "Allemagne", O for department "Oise", C, Asia 1 for the first Asian detection, and SAT 1-3 for "South African Territories". Serotype C is now considered extinct. Some viral strains are specifically adapted to pigs; other species may play a role in the spread of infection, but their importance as reservoirs is uncertain. The pathogen typically shows high affinity for epithelial tissue:
- Epitheliotropism: skin and cutaneous mucosa.
- myotropism: skeletal and cardiac muscles
- Neurotropism (very rare): Nervous tissue
General symptoms in all affected species are aphthous formation (blisters, vesicles) on the udder (teat, resistance to milking), claws (interclaw cleft, coronal border, in pigs aphthous formation up to the tarsal joint, reluctance to move, clattering, slow standing up) and mouth (inside of lips, tongue, gums, animals salivate and show reduced desire to eat); fever (40-42 °C), pain, apathy.
Other symptoms in cattle: decrease in milk yield, high mortality rate in calves.
Other symptoms in pigs: changes in claws/extremities often very severe, shoeing possible, deaths in piglets without clinical signs common.
Other symptoms in sheep: mainly fever. Lameness and lesions in the mouth area are often mild. Peracute deaths in young animals.
Biosicherheit
Dieses Video zeigt die erforderlichen Biosicherheitsmaßnahmen beim Betreten und Verlassen eines Betriebes, in dem eine anzeigepflichtige Tierseuche vermutet wird oder nachgewiesen wurde.
Diagnostics
FMD is clinically indistinguishable from other vesicular diseases (e.g. swine vesicular viral disease, vesicular stomatitis, Senecavirus A infection); appropriate laboratory diagnostics or exclusion of the disease by laboratory tests is therefore essential.
Suitable sample materials are
- Epithelium of unruptured or freshly ruptured vesicles (aphthae) in dry, sterile screw-top tubes or in a suitable transport medium (see below)
- Vesicle contents in dry, sterile screw-top tubes
- Swabs (e.g. swabs from older ruptured vesicles, or nasal/vengeance swabs for suspected FMD without clear changes)
- Whole blood (note: whole blood alone is not sufficient for diagnosis due to the short viraemia; tissue, vesicle contents or swabs must also be examined!)
- Milk (for dairy cattle - collective milk sample)
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Oesophageal/pharyngeal fluid (so-called probang samples) are primarily suitable for detecting chronic infections and should not be sent in acute cases of suspicion or exclusion
The sample materials should be sent to the analysing laboratory as quickly as possible after notification (ideally with refrigerants) in compliance with the relevant transport regulations (UN3373) and by a suitable logistics company.
The detection of FMDV from the above materials is possible using the following methods:
- Molecular biological identification with real-time RT-PCR (vesicle epithelium, vesicle fluid, swabs, milk, sample samples, serum)
- Antigen ELISA (vesicle epithelium, vesicle fluid)
- Virus isolation in cell culture (vesicle epithelium, vesicle fluid, swab, probang samples, serum)
- Serological test methods for antibody determination: ELISA, serum neutralisation test (serum)
- Serotyping or further pathogen characterisation:
- Antigen ELISA
- Serotype-specific RT-PCR
- sequencing
- Serotype-specific antibody ELISA
- Serum neutralisation test
Downloads
Contact
Institut für veterinärmedizinische Untersuchungen Mödling
- vetmed.moedling@ages.at
- +43 50 555 38112
-
Robert Koch-Gasse 17
2340 Mödling
Last updated: 11.06.2026
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