Brucellosis

What is brucellosis?
Brucellosis is a disease caused by a group of bacteria from the genus Brucella. These bacteria can infect both humans and animals.
Brucellosis is often spread when people eat contaminated food, which may include raw meat and unpasteurized milk. The bacteria can also be spread through the air or contact with an open wound.

People who work with animals and raw meat (e.g., butchers) have the highest chance of getting brucellosis.
While brucellosis is rare in the United States, it can be serious. You should talk with your doctor if you think you may have brucellosis. Antibiotics can usually treat it. However, some people get this disease repeatedly over the years, and medication won’t necessarily banish it forever.
To lower your risk of getting brucellosis, avoid eating raw meat and unpasteurized dairy products. You should also be sure to wear protective clothing when working with animals or animal tissues.

What puts people at risk of contracting brucellosis?
A variety of animals can contract brucellosis, including:
• goats
• sheep
• pigs
• cattle
• dogs

Humans can then contract the disease from infected animals.
The bacteria can be transmitted via:
• ingestion (eating)
• inhalation (breathing)
• contact with an open wound

This is why you have a higher chance of getting brucellosis if you spend a lot of time around animals. The risk is particularly high for people who come in contact with animal urine, blood, or tissue.
Animal placenta may also be infected with Brucella bacteria. You may be exposed to the bacteria if you help an animal give birth. Fortunately, brucellosis is rarely spread through casual contact with pets.
People who eat or drink raw animal products are also at higher risk for contracting brucellosis. Unpasteurized milk and cheese, as well as raw meat, can carry Brucella bacteria.

Brucellosis is rarely spread from one human to another. However, it can be spread through breastfeeding or sexual contact. Infection is rare without contact with blood or tissue.
Symptoms of brucellosis
The symptoms of brucellosis in humans are similar to those of the flu. The symptoms may include:
• appetite loss
• back pain
• chills
• lethargy
• headaches
• pain in the abdomen
• pain in the joints
• fever that comes and goes
• weight loss

Diagnosing brucellosis
Your doctor may test you for brucellosis if you have unexplained flu-like symptoms. Testing may include:
• blood culture
• urine culture
• bone marrow culture
• cerebrospinal fluid testing
• testing for antibodies to brucellosis

Tell your doctor if you have flu-like symptoms and have been exposed to animals that might have brucellosis. Exposure doesn’t need to be recent.
You could have brucellosis even if your contact with animals occurred months ago. If you get this disease, it can take anywhere from 1 week to 2 months for symptoms to appear.
Treating brucellosis
Brucellosis is usually treated with antibiotics. Your doctor may prescribe both rifampin and doxycycline. You’ll need to take these medications for at least 6 weeks.

Complications of brucellosis
Antibiotics won’t always eliminate the bacteria that cause brucellosis. Your doctor may have to prescribe several drugs before the disease is fully treated. In some cases, the bacteria may remain despite treatment.
If treatment isn’t successful, brucellosis can cause complications. These may include:
• encephalitis (inflammation of the brain)
• epididymo-orchitis (inflammation of the testicles)
• lesions on the bones and joints
• endocarditis (infection of the heart’s inner lining)
• meningitis (inflammation of the membranes around your brain)

Some of these complications can be lethal. Fortunately, death from brucellosis is rare. The mortality rate for brucellosis is as low as 2 percent. Most people with brucellosis are expected to survive the disease, especially if they don’t have complications.
Preventing brucellosis
Brucellosis is preventable. To lower your chances of getting it, you’re encouraged to do the following:
• Avoid consuming raw meat or unpasteurized milk, cheese, and ice cream.
• Wear gloves and protective glasses when handling animals or animal tissues.
• Cover any open wounds on your skin when coming in contact with animal blood.
• Wear protective clothing and gloves when helping animals give birth.

There’s a brucellosis vaccine for animals. If you work with domestic animals, you should consider vaccinating them for brucellosis.
However, there’s no vaccine for brucellosis in humans. That’s why it’s important to take other steps to protect yourself from the bacteria.