Thailand to host 4th RAICON 2013 from Sept 11-13

BANGKOK, September 7 (TNA) - Thailand will hold the 4th Rabies in Asia Conference 2013, (RAICON 2013), next week, during which rabies experts in the region will share experiences, innovations and achievements in preventing and controlling the disease. Deputy Public Health Minister Sorawong Thienthong told reporters on Saturday that the RAICON 2013 will be held at the Chatrium Hotel Riverside Bangkok from September 11-13. For Thailand, Surawong said Thailand targets to become rabies-free by 2020 in line with a joint agreement reached during the latest ASEAN Health Ministers Meeting. According to the deputy health minister, the Rabies situation in Thailand has improved since 1980, when the country recorded the highest death rate from the incurable disease at 370, but the death toll fell to 50 in 2000, 15 in 2010 and 4 last year. However, six people died from the disease in Thailand during January 1-September 5, 2013. The deputy health minister acknowledged, despite the overall downward trend, the Rabies situation in Thailand's central and southern regions remain a worry and his ministry is, therefore, speeding up vaccinating domestic animals and asking people to monitor their pets, as domestic cats and dogs have been found to now become the major source of Rabies infections. (TNA)