After the spread of dangerous animal disease pathogens on the premises of the Virchow Clinic, the Charité killed around 1,200 laboratory animals.
By Birgit Bürkner and Axel Lier
When asked by the BZ, a spokesman for the university hospital said that the entire population of small animals had been affected by the measure – mice, rats, guinea pigs and rabbits.
In the middle of last year there was an outbreak of Q fever in the research facility for experimental medicine on the Wedding campus. The disease, which can be transmitted to humans and occurs worldwide in livestock farms, is caused by bacteria called Coxiella.
20 employees were infected at the time. Despite disinfection, the extremely resistant pathogens continued to spread within the building.
Also read: Q fever! 20 Charité employees infected with animal disease
“There were also positive findings in the department’s offices,” said the spokesman. “The entire facility was then decontaminated because the Charité takes its responsibility for the protection of its employees very seriously.”
Couldn’t the death of the animals have been prevented? “In the case of a Coxellen-positive stock, there is a high risk of infection for the staff,” emphasizes the spokesman. “The killing of the animals was therefore essential to eliminate the infection.”
Coxiellosis in animals is usually asymptomatic, in humans it can lead to lung and heart inflammation and even death.