CONTENTS TSE Freedom Assurance Program What is a TSE? The History of Australia's TSE Measures National TSE Surveillance Program Australian Ruminant Feed Ban Imported Animal Quarantine and Surveillance Research and Development Training Emergency Preparedness Links

Why do we need a TSE Surveillance Program?

Australia is free of BSE and scrapie. However, the International Animal Health Code of the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) requires that countries have in place a surveillance system to detect BSE and scrapie should they occur, and to assess the diseases prevalence if it is present. It is important that Australia meets this requirement to assure continued access to export markets.

Active surveillance for Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) commenced in 1990 and was modified in 1998 with the development of the NTSESP, which is a core activity of the TSE Freedom Assurance Program (TSEFAP). This will continue to be managed as a discrete program to assist in maintaining its integrity. The primary purpose of the program is to support trade by maintaining a surveillance system for TSEs that is consistent with the OIE Terrestrial Animal Health Code and assures all countries which import cattle and sheep commodities that Australia remains free of these diseases. The OIE Code includes:

• Chapter 2.3.13 Bovine spongiform encephalopathy
  
• Appendix 3.6.3 TSE agents inactivation procedures
  
• Appendix 3.8.4 Surveillance and monitoring systems for BSE

The NTSESP is a targeted surveillance program that has an annual sampling intensity designed to be 99% confident of detecting a BSE or scrapie if it is present in at least one in a million adult cattle or sheep respectively. This is achieved by the annual laboratory examination of a minimum of 400 cattle and 450 sheep brains, collected from animals showing clinical signs of a neurological disorder, eligible to be classified as a suspect TSE under OIE Code guidelines. Results are regularly uploaded to the NTSESP database with a summary publicly available over the internet. From July 2003, sampling was increased to include 400 brains from 'downer' animals annually to further satisfy the OIE Code and to aid in the Australian Animal Health Laboratories (AAHL) maintaining accreditation for the Prionics rapid test.

The NTSESP is a targeted component of Australia's overall disease surveillance effort, which has the purpose of providing cost-effective information for assessing and managing risks associated with trade in animals and products, animal production efficiency and public health. The overall system comprises both general and targeted surveillance. General surveillance comprises a wide range of activities to maintain a continuous watch over the livestock disease profile so that unexpected changes can be recognised. Activities include pre- and post-slaughter inspection at meatworks, inspection of animals at sale yards and other points of aggregation, farm visits by private and government veterinarians and results from laboratory testing.

The NTSESP is complemented by general surveillance for neurological disease in all animal species with intensive follow-up investigations of cases involving unexplained neurological signs. Intensive follow-up has uncovered a number of rare neurological conditions where a TSE has been ruled out. These investigations have shown that some hereditary diseases, plant poisonings, infectious diseases and musculoskeletal conditions can result in signs that mimic those of TSEs. They are of particular relevance to Australia because of their rarity, geographical remoteness and/or unusual circumstances of their occurrence. Resolving the causes of these conditions gives additional confidence that Australia's comprehensive approach to surveillance is detecting rare neurological diseases and ruling out TSEs.

The program is managed by Animal Health Australia and is planned and implemented through the National Advisory Committee comprising a National Coordinator and representatives from the relevant livestock industries, the Australian Government and state and territory animal health agencies.

How does the Program work?

The Program involves the detailed examination of a minimum of 400 cattle, 450 sheep each year with signs of neurological disease which could be mistaken for a TSE, as well as examining a further 400 downer animals. The use of histopathology as the screening test is followed up with confirmatory testing at AAHL using a range of methods where required.

These samples (the entire brain and other parts) are submitted to laboratories around Australia for TSE testing and differential diagnosis can be explored. Results are then entered on an ongoing basis into the National TSE database. Detailed results are available and summary results are reported via the National Animal Health Information System and the Animal Health in Australia report.

Specimen and information flows in the program are summarised in the diagram below.

Further information

Technical details of the program can be found in the National Guidelines for Field Operations (797 KB) and the Australia and New Zealand Standard Diagnostic Protocols for TSE (2,087 KB) .

NTSESP Training Guide:

This guide contains images and footage of procedures which some viewers may find distressing. Discretion is advised.

This NTSESP Training Guide contains information for veterinarians, animal health officers, and producers collecting submissions for the National Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy Surveillance Program.

Page Updated: 17 October 2008