title: Prevalence of brucellosis among abattoir workers in Saudi Arabia.
abstract: The prevalence of brucellosis among abattoir workers in Saudi Arabia was determined through a randomised multi-stage sampling of 1200 abattoir workers. Diagnosis was made by both blood culture and standard tube agglutination test. The overall prevalence of brucellosis was 4.0% among abattoir workers. Infection was more common among butchers (8.9%), veterinarians and veterinary assistants (5.4%), and administrative personnel (1.1%). In order to reach optimum planning for a national brucellosis control programme in Saudi Arabia, ministerial co-ordination should be established with formulation of inter-governmental veterinary agreements between the Saudi government and the relevant authorities of animal exporting countries. A national survey on animal marketing is required.
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Medicine, College of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: al-Sekait
mesh_terms: D000003:Abattoirs / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000328:Adult; D002006:Brucellosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D009790:Occupations; D015995:Prevalence; D012529:Saudi Arabia / Q000453:epidemiology