What is 'Brucellosis'?

Answer 1

Brucellosis, also called Bang's disease, Gibraltar fever, Malta fever, Maltese fever, Mediterranean fever, rock fever, or undulant fever, is a highly contagious zoonosis caused by ingestion of unsterilized milk or meat from infected animals, or close contact with their secretions. Transmission from human to human, for example through sexual contact or from mother to child, is exceedingly rare, but possible. Brucella spp. are small, Gram-negative, non-motile, non-spore-forming rods, which function as facultative intracellular parasites that cause chronic disease, which usually persists for life. Symptoms include profuse sweating and joint and muscle pain. Brucellosis has been recognized in animals including humans since the 19th century. (Wikipedia)

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Answer 2

Brucellosis is a bacterial disease caused by members of the Brucella genus that can infect humans but primarily infects livestock. Symptoms of the disease include intermittent fever, sweating, chills, aches, and mental depression. The disease can become chronic and recur, particularly if untreated.

Answer 3

Brucellosis is an infectious, contagious disease that mainly affects cattle and buffalo/bison, but also affects humans. Humans mainly are infected through unpasteurized milk, cheese and other dairy products, and more rarely via air or direct contact with infected animals.

Brucellosis is also known as Bang's Disease, Crimean Fever, Gibraltar Fever, Malta Fever, Maltese Fever, Mediterranean fever, rock fever or undulant fever. In cattle, bison and buffalo it is known to be more highly contagious because of direct contact through the fetal membranes, vaginal excretions, semen and uterine fluids which contain large quantities of the bacterial species Brucella.

Symptoms in humans are similar to the flu and include fever, headaches, chills, sweats, fever, weakness, and joint, muscle and Back pain. Symptoms will show a few days to a few months after infection. Symptoms can become chronic and persist for years even after treatment. Long-term symptoms and signs include fevers, fatigue, Arthritis, and spondylitis (inflammatory arthritis of the spine and other adjacent joints).

Brucellosis has shown to affect other animals like goats, sheep, pigs, dogs, wild boar, camels, and reindeer, and some wild animals like whales, porpoises and harbor seals. Symptoms in cattle include abortion, stillborn calf, calves born weak, retained placenta, infertility, reduced milk yields, and swollen testes in bulls. Brucellosis is more commonly spread in cattle through breeding from infected semen of bulls or vaginal fluid of cows.

Infection can occur through ingestion of raw or unpasteurized dairy products, as well as raw or undercooked meat in some cases, all from infected animals. The bacteria can also be inhaled through the air mainly by those working directly with animals like farmers, slaughterhouse workers and lab technicians. Direct contact is mainly through exposure to blood, semen or placental tissue from the infected animal, where bacteria enter the new host's bloodstream through a cut, an abrasion or another wound. Normal contact with animals like through touching, brushing or playing will rarely result in infection, however people with weakened immune systems should avoid touching dogs that are known to have the disease. It's more uncommon for brucellosis to be transmitted from person to person, however it can be transmitted from infected mothers to their infants through labour or breast-feeding. Rarely can brucellosis be transmitted through sexual activity, exposure to contaminated blood or bone marrow transfusions.

While treatment is available to humans through antibiotics, none are available for cattle or bison affected with the disease. Vaccinations for livestock are available and regulated to be used in cattle at specific ages, with more emphasis placed on heifer calves between two to four months of age. Eradication through quarantining new herds and having them blood tested, as well as culling are more effective, as well as biosecurity and hygienic practices of disinfection.

Answer 4

It is a disease that mostly affects cattle, but can also affect humans if they eat or drink unpasteurized dairy products.