Seroepidemiological study of Q fever, brucellosis and tularemia in butchers and slaughterhouses workers in Lorestan, western of Iran

Publication date: Available online 19 June 2019Source: Comparative Immunology, Microbiology and Infectious DiseasesAuthor(s): Saber Esmaeili, Fahimeh Bagheri Amiri, Hamid Mokhayeri, Mohammad Hassan Kayedi, Max Maurin, Mahdi Rohani, Ehsan MostafaviAbstractMost zoonoses are occupational diseases. Q fever, brucellosis and tularemia are major zoonotic diseases for butchers and slaughterhouse workers. However, little information is available about these infectious diseases in such professional populations in western of Iran. The aim of this study was to investigate the seroprevalence and risk factors associated with these three zoonoses among butchers and slaughterhouse workers in the Lorestan province of Iran. In 2017, 289 individuals (144 butchers or slaughterhouse workers, and 145 people from the general population) were enrolled in 11 different counties of this province. Collected serum samples were tested by ELISA for detection of IgG antibodies against Coxiella burnetii, Brucella spp. or Francisella tularensis antigens. The seroprevalence of Q fever, brucellosis and tularemia among all participants were 23.5%, 31.8% and 3.8%, respectively. The seroprevalence of brucellosis and Q fever among butchers and slaughterhouse workers (43.7% and 29.8%, respectively) were significantly higher (p < 0.05) than those of the general population (20% and 17.2%, respectively). A contact history with small ruminants (sheep and goats) was associated with a higher risk of positive serol...
Source: Comparative Immunology, Microbiology and Infectious Diseases - Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research