Brucellosis
Brucellosis
- Wikipedia article: Brucellosis
Brucellosis in humans is a potentially life-threatening multisystem disease that can be extremely difficult to treat. There are several varieties of brucellosis, all caused by bacteria of the genus Brucella. The most notable are B. abortus and B. melitensis, which affect larger species of domestic animals, and B. canis, which infects dogs and other canids. All are widely spread around the world. The most severe infections are thought to be associated with B. melitensis, which primarily infects goats, sheep, and camels in the Mediterranean, Asia, Latin America, parts of Africa, and some southern European countries. Humans can contract B. canis through contact with the bodily fluids of infected dogs, especially semen, urine, and vaginal fluids. Dogs can be infected with brucellosis without showing any signs or symptoms, and infection can only be diagnosed with specific blood tests. The typical symptoms of brucellosis contracted from dogs are fever that comes and goes, loss of appetite, fatigue, weakness, malaise, sore joints, lower back pain, spinal pain, headache, depression, abdominal pain, constipation, diarrhea, vomiting, dizziness, unsteadiness of gait, and urinary retention. Heart and lung complications can occur. Infected individuals may exhibit only some of these symptoms. Other forms of brucellosis can be more severe.
With approximately 500,000 zoonotic infections occurring each year worldwide (source: CDC), brucellosis imposes a significant burden on humanity. In North America (excluding Mexico) and northern Europe, brucellosis has been reduced to a rare disease status through vaccination and eradication programs; however, it remains prevalent in much of the world. In various countries, up to 10% of dogs harbor this bacterium, with rates as high as 42.7% in some provinces of China, posing a significant threat to the health of veterinarians and individuals who handle the blood or semen of infected animals. In the USA, only about 100 cases of human brucellosis are diagnosed annually, although some sources suggest it is underdiagnosed and underreported. Most other countries report much higher rates, with high-risk areas including the Mediterranean Basin (Portugal, Spain, southern France, Italy, Greece, Turkey, North Africa), South and Central America (including Mexico), Eastern Europe, Asia, Africa, the Caribbean, and the Middle East.
See also Robalee Setters and/or Vet medicine
External links
- More information is available at [ Wikipedia:Brucellosis ]
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