The seroprevalence of antibodies to Japanese encephalitis virus in five New South Wales towns at high risk of infection, 2022

Abstract

In reply: On behalf of our co-authors, we thank Islam and Seale for their interest in our article.¹ We largely support the general sentiments of Islam and Seale.² The seroprevalence survey that was the focus of our article was undertaken to support and guide the rapid public health response to the emergence of Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) in New South Wales. The nature of a rapid public health response, which is focused on understanding enough to contain the risk in a short space of time, inherently limits the comprehensiveness of the epidemiological design.

Although Islam and Seale indicated that outbreaks of JEV have been reported in Australia since 1995,³ the few reported cases were sporadic and the single cluster limited to the islands off the north coast of Australia.⁴ The outbreak in 2022 represented the first detections of JEV in south-eastern Australia, and was close to 3000 km from the nearest previous case. The emergence of JEV in a largely naïve population in a temperate climate was significant in the course of the disease and presented challenges in understanding JEV transmission dynamics in the Australian context.

We acknowledge that social science approaches would certainly expand our understanding of risk behaviours contributing to infection, in response to an emerging disease. The One Health approach,⁵ referred to by Islam and Seale, has been well practised in NSW, with strong collaboration, communication and coordination across animal, human and environmental sectors.⁶ This intersect is particularly important to emphasise and acknowledge when responding to zoonotic and vector-borne disease outbreaks, which tend to impact regional and agricultural communities away from metropolitan centres.

No relevant disclosures.