Tulsa health officials are monitoring a U.S. outbreak of a flesh-eating parasite that lays eggs in animals’ wounds. New World screwworms can be a risk to livestock, but health leaders say there’s no reason to panic yet.
Dr. Mike Jones, chair of the Tulsa Health Department’s Board of Health, says human risk of contracting the screwworm is low according to information from state veterinarian Dr. Rod Hall.
Jones told the board at the June 17 meeting the “good news” is the U.S. Department of Agriculture considers the screwworm outbreak as “currently no threat to the human food supply.” He said ranchers and livestock owners need to make sure they are checking their herds daily and not allowing open sores to fester.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there have been no reports of locally acquired human infestation and only 16 domestically acquired cases in animals.
For more information or to submit a suspected case, visit screwworm.gov.
This was informed by Ashley Samuel’s Documenter notes from the Tulsa Health Department Board of Health meeting June 17. If you’re interested in becoming a Documenter, visit us at documenters.org.
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