An 8-year-old girl from Kottakkal in Malappuram district of Kerala died at the Government Medical College Hospital, Kozhikode, recently after undergoing around two months of treatment for brucellosis.
It is a bacterial infection caused by the consumption of unpasteurized milk.
Caused by - Various Brucella species.
It is also known as undulant fever, Mediterranean fever, Malta fever
It mainly infects cattle, swine, goats, sheep and dogs.
Transmission - Humans acquire it through direct contact with infected animals, by eating or drinking contaminated animal products or by inhaling airborne agents.
Most cases are caused by ingesting unpasteurized milk or cheese from infected goats or sheep. Human-to-human transmission is very rare.
Symptoms - Fever, weakness, weight loss, and general a feeling of discomfort. In many patients, they can be mild and may not get diagnosed at all.
Incubation Period - It can vary from one week to two months, but it usually lasts between two and four weeks.
Vulnerable age group - It affects people of all ages. Transmission primarily affects farmers, butchers, hunters, veterinarians and laboratory personnel.
Treatment - Treatment options include taking doxycycline 100 mg tablets twice a day for 45 days, and streptomycin 1 g daily for 15 days as per the advice of the doctors.
Prevention - Vaccination of cattle, goats and sheep is among the prevention options.
Pasteurisation of milk for direct consumption and for creating derivatives such as cheese is an important step to prevent its transmission from animals to humans.
