An Outbreak of Brucella melitensis among Goat Farmers in Thailand, December 2009

Abstract

Goat farming has increased substantially in Thailand as a result of government’s agricultural policies in the past. On 19 Oct 2009, the Thailand Bureau of Epidemiology received a notification of a confirmed and fatal case of brucellosis in a goat farmer. An investigation was launched to identify the magnitude and risk factors of the disease. A cross-sectional study among persons in contact with goats from the same marketing chain as the fatal case was performed. Sera samples of goats from three farms associated with the fatal case were collected. The fatal case was a 79-year-old male with hypertension, gout and renal calculi. He had been raising goats since 2007 until onset of the symptoms, without any protective equipment. He developed peritonitis and acute renal failure in June 2009, and eventually died from respiratory failure on 9 Sep 2009. Hemoculture of his specimen revealed positive for Brucella melitensis a month after his death. Three additional cases of human brucellosis were identified from 38 contacts (AR = 10.3%) and one goat tested positive for Brucella. Most of the patients experienced myalgia and arthalgia. The study showed that all cases had history of unprotected exposure to goat carcasses or meat (PR undefined, P-value = 0.006). This outbreak of brucellosis among goat farmers emphasizes the importance of health education for goat farmers and the prompt sharing of data between human and animal health professionals.