Brucellosis in livestock: Seroepidemiology, risk factors and preventivestrategies to manage the disease in Famenin, Iran

Background and Aim : Brucellosis is an infectious disease in humans and livestock. The diseaseis endemic in many regions of Iran, e.g. Hamedan province. Knowledge of infection rates andassociated risk factors is essential to control and prevent the disease. The main purpose of thepresent work was to determine the prevalence of brucellosis and associated risk factors in cattle,sheep, and goats in Famenin, Hamedan province, West of Iran.Methods : Blood samples of ۱۷۵۸ animals (sheep, goats, and cattle) were obtained in differentrural regions of Famenin. The samples were evaluated to detect Brucella-antibodies using RoseBengal Plate Test (RBPT), Wright Standard Tube Agglutination Test (SAT), and ۲-Mercapto-Ethanol (۲-ME) techniques. The risk factors associated with the disease such as age, gender,history of vaccination, and abortion in animals were evaluated.Results : The prevalence of brucellosis was detected at ۱.۳% among individual animals and ۱۱%among herds. This rate was ۱.۴۳% for sheep and ۱.۰۵% for goats. No seropositive case wasdetected in cattle samples using RBT, STAT, and ۲-ME. There was no significant differencebetween positive samples in sheep and goats. The antibodies to the Brucella infection were ۲.۷۳%with RBPT and ۱.۳۰% with SAT and ۲-ME. There were no significant correlations betweenbrucellosis rate and the presented variables except gender in sheep. Brucellosis in rams was ۵.۷times higher than in ewes (P<۰.۰۰۰۱).Conclusion : This is a comprehensive evaluation of animal brucellosis parallel to humans cohortstudy in the Famenin region for the first time. Although the rate of brucellosis in animals is low inthe region, explaining the risk factors to farmers, mass vaccination, regular screening of animals,and culling the positive animals are very important for controlling and reducing the disease in theregion.

کلیدواژه ها:

Animal ، Brucellosis ، Endemic ، Risk factors ، Prevention