Lumpy skin disease (LSD) is a viral disease of cattle that causes economic losses through decreased milk production, abortions, and damaged hides. It spreads mainly through arthropod vectors like mosquitoes and ticks. While it does not pose a risk to public health, it can cause fever, skin nodules, and infertility in cattle. Diagnosis involves PCR testing of samples like skin lesions, scabs, and blood. Control relies on raising awareness, strengthening diagnostic laboratories, vaccination, and controlling vectors and animal movement. Proper sample collection and storage is important for effective testing and involves collecting intact skin or tissue samples in viral transport media.

1. LUMPY SKIN DISEASE
(LSD)
Muhammad Ahmed Zia
Veterinary Officer (Dairy)
LES, Bhunikey (Pattoki); District Kasur

2. WHAT IS LSD?
• Economic Losses;
• Loss of condition
• Decreased milk production
• Abortions
• Infertility
• Damaged hides
• Spread mainly by vectors as tsetse flies, mosquitoes, ticks.
• Morbidity – 10-20%
• Mortality – 1-5%
• Don’t cause chronic disease.

3. PUBLIC HEALTH CONCERN:
• No public health implication – Non zoonotic
• Skeletal muscles, casings, gelatin, collagen, hooves & horns – Safe commodities -
Transmission

4. SOURCES OF VIRUS:
• Skin nodules, scabs, crusts – Up to 35 days.
• Blood, saliva, ocular & nasal discharge and semen.
• Blood (viraemia) – 7-21 days post-infection.
• Semen – Up to 42 days post-inoculation.
• Only single evidence – Placental transmission.

5. TRANSMISSION:
• Principle means – Arthropod vector (mosquitoes,biting flies, male ticks)
• Infected bull – Semen.
• Via fomites – Not proved.
• Direct contact – Minor role.

6. CLINICAL DIAGNOSIS:
• Fever – 106°F.
• Cutaneous nodules (2-5cm) – Head, neck, limbs, udder, genitalia, perineum.
• Nodules – Circumscribed,firm, round, raised – Involve skin & s/c tissue.
• Large nodules – Necrotic, fibrotic – Persist for several months
• Enlarged superficial LN’s
• Myiasis
• Vesicles, erosions, ulcers – MM of mouth, GIT, trachea & lungs.
• Limbs and other ventral parts of body – Edematous.

7. CLINICAL DIAGNOSIS:
• Bulls – Permanently or temporarily infertile.
• Pregnant cows – May abort.
• Depression, anorexia, emaciation.
• Rhinitis, conjunctivitis, excessive salivation.

8. DIAGNOSTIC CAPACITY OF PAKISTAN:
• PCR at National Veterinary Laboratory, NARC.

9. IMMEDIATE ACTION PLAN FOR CONTROL
AND PREVENTION:
• Awareness – Veterinarians, paraprofessional staff, farmers.
• Distribution of posters and leaflets (From OIE website).
• https://rr-asia.oie.int/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/oie-poster-farmer-web.pdf
• https://rr-asia.oie.int/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/oie-leaflet-lumpy-skin-disease-
web.pdf
• https://rr-asia.oie.int/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/oie-poster-lumpy-skin-disease-
web.pdf
• Strengthening of Laboratories.
• Training of laboratory staff.

10. IMMEDIATE ACTION PLAN FOR CONTROL
AND PREVENTION:
• 10X of goat pox vaccine – Effective and safe for adult cattle.
• Controlled animal movement.
• Vector control.
• Use of detergent and disinfectant in affected premises.
• Symptomatic treatment

11. GUIDELINES FOR SAMPLE COLLECTION:
• Preferred samples:
• Skin lesions, scabs and other tissues.
• Saliva and nasal swabs – PCR testing.
• Collect blood in EDTA for PCR testing
• In heparin for virus isolation.
• Collect serum sample – ELISA.
• Work aseptically avoiding cross contamination b/w samples.

12. GUIDELINES FOR SAMPLE COLLECTION:
• When to collect sample?
• At early stage.
• For live virus – Skin lesions, scabs or heparin blood.
• Viral DNA can be detected in scabs & skin lesion through PCR – Several months post-
infection.

13. GUIDELINES FOR SAMPLE COLLECTION:
• Persistence of LSD in Different Types of Samples:
LiveVirus can be detected: Time
Skin nodules 39 days
Dried scabs Several years (if kept @ -20)
Blood 5-16 days
Saliva & nasal discharge At least 21 days
Semen 22 days
Milk, eye discharge,urine & feces Duration of infectivity – Unknown

14. GUIDELINES FOR SAMPLE COLLECTION:
• Saliva, ocular, nasal swabs – Through viral transport medium.
• Can stored up to 48 hours at 2-8°C.
• Skin samples – Whole thickness skin sample.
• Through transport media.
• Several transport media are commercially available.
• 10-20% glycerol in phosphate buffered saline for PCR and virus isolation.