Foot-and-mouth disease in Ethiopia from 1988 to 1991

During the period 1988 to 1991 samples from 16 foot-and-mouth disease outbreaks in Ethiopia were examined at the National Veterinary Institute, Ethiopia, and at the FAO World Reference Laboratory for Foot-and-Mouth Disease, UK. Typing of the virus responsible was possible in 13 of these outbreaks representing 10 separate disease events; 8 of these were caused by serotype O and 2 by serotype SAT2. This is the first record of the presence of serotype SAT2 foot-and-mouth disease virus in Ethiopia. In contrast to earlier studies serotypes A and C were not detected.