Investigation of Seroprevalence of Brucellosis among Occupational High Risk Groups in Elazig Region

Introduction: Brucellosis is one of the most important zoonotic diseases worldwide and continues to be a public health problem in many countries. The major transmission route of infection in endemic areas, including Turkey, is consumption of unpasteurized milk or dairy products. However due to the transmission of disease from animals to humans by direct/indirect contact, it can also be an occupational risk for some individuals. This study was conducted to investigate the seroprevalence of brucellosis among risk occupational groups in the Elazig region. Materials and Methods: Blood samples obtained from a total of 370 individuals particularly at risk of Brucella infection and from 50 individuals not at risk who served controls. All sera were evaluated by both the Rose-Bengal Plate and Standard Tube Agglutination (STA) tests. For determining seropositivity with STA test, a cut-off titer of ≥ 1/80 was adopted. Results: Seropositivity of brucellosis in the risk groups was 4% with RB test and 2.2% with STA test, while no positivity detected in control group. Seropositivity of brucellosis with STA was as follows: 4.2% (3/72) in animal husbandry workers, 1.9% in dairy farmers (1/53), 2.5% in butchers (1/40), 0% in abottoir workers (0/49), 2.6% in veterinarians (2/78) and 1.3% in laboratory personnel (1/78). Risk groups were compared with the control group, but there was no statistically significant differences between them. Seropositivity titer was ≥ 1/160 with STA in 3 of 370 serum samples, which were obtained from persons at risk of brucellosis. These three person were diagnosed brucellosis and treated for Brucella infection. Conclusion: High rate of brucellosis seropositivity in risk groups indicates the need for education and occupational preventions