An international approach to laboratory diagnosis of animal diseases

During the past thirteen years, and as part of an overall support program for developing countries, the Joint FAO/IAEA Division has developed a series of standardized and internationally validated ELISA-based systems for the diagnosis and surveillance of the major epizootics affecting livestock in the developing world. Linked to comprehensive internal and external quality assurance protocols and to the use of standardized equipment and data management software, veterinary laboratories in many developing countries are now able to provide quality assured results on the prevalence of the major diseases affecting their livestock. This internationally standardized approach can rapidly enable developing countries to both monitor the effectiveness of their disease control and eradication programs and to meet requirements for international disease status recognition and for trade in livestock and livestock products.