Buffalopox Outbreak Likely

While the World Health Organisation has expressed concern over the largest outbreak of suspected monkey pox in the Republic of Congo, Indian virologists have warned that buffalo pox may emerge as a serious animal-borne disease in India in light of discontinuation of vaccinations against small pox. A team from the National Institute of Virology in Pune which studied outbreaks of buffalo pox in villages in Maharashtra from 1992 to 1996 reported that the threat of buffalo pox merging as a serious disease in humans cannot be excluded.