Animal tuberculosis in the world

Although data collected by the International Office of Epizootics has indic ated that programmes for the control of bovine tuberculosis have resulted i n a considerable decrease in the incidence of this disease in cattle and ma n in industrialized countries, its prevalence is still high in developing c ountries where farm stock and wild animal populations constitute a permanen t reservoir of Mycobacterium bovis. A high risk of reinfection from wild re servoirs persists in the USA, Hungary, Ireland, New-Zealand and the UK. Thi s situation emphasizes the need for international co-operation in the ongoi ng fight against this zoonosis.