A Survey Of Brucellosis Infection Among Family Members From Sheep Farmers In The Western Pastoral Areas Of Jilin Province

Brucellosis is an infectious allergic disease caused by bacteria of the genusbrucella, it is also a zoonotic disease of worldwide distribution. In recent years, theepidemic situation of brucellosis is rising in China and it cause great harm topeople’s health in the country. Brucellosis has become one of the important publichealth problems. Jilin Province is an epidemic area of brucellosis, the method offlock breeding which relies mainly on household members, leads to families fromsheep farmers always being infected in aggregation because of the same habit. T Thesource of brucellosis cannot be completely eradicated and at present there is nosuitable vaccine against the disease for the protection of humans. Improvingknowledge on the awareness of brucellosis and changing unhealthy behaviors hasbecome one of the important measures to prevent brucellosis. Currently,investigations on brucellosis are mostly aim at occupational groups, and only fewreports exist about family members from sheep farmers.Objective:Through a questionnaire survey and serological tests of the families from sheepfarmers in the western pastoral areas of Jilin Province, got to know the general statusof family members and information about brucellosis infection, awareness andbehaviors among the families of sheep farmers. Analysis of the awareness andbehaviors among different infected people provide reference evidence for clear direction of education and promotion of behavioral change interventions to controlthe spread of brucellosis in sheep farmers. Methods:In November2012, two townships were randomly selected in Qianguo Countywhere people are highly infected with brucellosis, and a total of9villages wereselected from two townships. All families of sheep farmers in these villages wereinvestigated with related questionnaire and brucellosis serology test."Familyquestionnaire" including the status of breeding was answered by members of afamily as one group who were mainly engaged in breeding,(that is, a familyanswered a questionnaire);"Members questionnaire" including general status,awareness of brucellosis, behaviors related to breeding sheep was answered by allmembers of sheep farmers,family. SPSS16.0software was used for statisticalanalysis. Descriptive statistical analysis was carried out on the characteristics offamily, brucellosis awareness, behavior, infection and so on. Chi-square test wasused in the univariate analysis of the influence factors for brucellosis infection andcompare awareness among different infected populations; Bonferroni adjustmentmethod (α’=α/3) was used to compare differences between two groups.Results:1. A total of155sheep farmers,families were selected and out of these,149copies of completely and correctly-filled questionnaires were collected, giving aresponse rate of96.13%.82families were found in which at least a person wasinfected with brucellosis, giving a prevalence of brucellosis of55.03%, and familieswith two or more infected members accounted for21.96%of families with theinfection. The existence of the phenomenon of mixed grazing sheep farmersaccounted for67.80%of the total survey; sheep quarantine was69.10%; and herdvaccination was78.50%.2. A total of410members from sheep farmers, families were selected and outof these,403copies of completely and correctly-filled questionnaires were collected,giving a response rate of98.30%. Out of the403members from sheep farmers,families,84members had the brucellosis antibodies and the antibody positive rate of brucellosis was20.84%.107members were infected with brucellosis,56membersof the infected cases were re-infections.21member cases were, and30memberswere asymptomatic, the prevalence of brucellosis in infection was higher than that infemales (χ2=10.082,P=0.001).3. The awareness rate of brucellosis was43.63%. Three aspects including:"animal brucellosis","human brucellosis" and "brucellosis prevention" were72.30%,36.30%, and39.80%respectively. The awareness rate of infected population amongfamily members from sheep farmers, was higher than that of uninfected population(χ2=35.347，P＜0.001); the awareness rate among the population of formers whowere re-infected was higher than that in those infected for the first time (χ2=28.507,P＜0.001) and uninfected population(χ2=64.127,P＜0.001).4. There were8kinds of behaviors related to sheep breeding, behaviors withhigher contact rate were feeding (86.85%),cleaning sheep folds(80.40%),followedby holding lamp(71.71%),delivering sheep (61.54%),vaccination(53.85%),apoblema (47.39%); behaviors with lower contact rate were milking (22.08%) andslaughtering sheep(14.89%); behaviors with higher protective rate were deliveringsheep (31.85%) and apoblema (27.23%), followed by holding lamp(22.49),vaccinating (21.66%), cleaning sheepfolds (18.83%),feeding(17.71%),behaviors with lower protective rate were milking (11.24%)and slaughteringsheep(8.33%).5. Analysis of brucellosis infection and behavior of participants related tosheep breeding, revealed there was statistical significant difference betweenbrucellosis infection and delivering sheep as well as vaccination (χ2=4.505,P=0.034；χ2=5.521,P=0.019)； there was statistical significant difference between newbrucellosis infection and delivering sheep (χ2=4.711,P=0.030)； there was nostatistical significant difference between brucellosis infection and protectivebehaviors（P＞0.05）.Conclusions:1. The sheep were almost from the local; there was the presence of the phenomenon of mixed manure, litter mishandling; the rate of herd immunization ofsheep was too low to form protective immune barrier.2. The phenomenon of familial aggregation existed. The prevalence ofbrucellosis infection males was higher than in females.3. Re-infected population was higher than newly infected and uninfectedpopulations.4. Behaviors related to sheep breeding exist commonly among the families fromsheep farmers, the rate of feeding and cleaning sheepfold are higher than others.5. Brucellosis infection is related to delivering sheep and vaccination and newbrucellosis infection is related to delivering sheep.6. The level and rate of protection is generally low when members are engagedin breeding.