The information below can be photocopied for reference. It is a highly infectious viral disease in which fever is followed by the development of vesicles or blisters - chiefly in the mouth or on the feet. There are 7 main types of virus, which produce similar symptoms and which can only be differentiated in the laboratory. A.There are no serious human health implications, although humans in contact with infected animals very occasionally get mild respiratory symptoms. Humans do not become infected by eating meat from infected animals.
Infected animals begin by excreting the virus a few days before signs of the disease develop.
Pigs in particular produce large numbers of virus particles. Airborne spread of the disease takes place readily. The prevailing meteorological conditions and local topography determine the distance that the disease can travel and this may be considerable. The disease is also spread mechanically by the movement of animals, persons, vehicles and other things, which have been contaminated by the virus. Meat from the carcass of animals infected with FMD at the time of slaughter can transmit the virus.