title: Test and cull of high risk Coxiella burnetii infected pregnant dairy goats is not feasible due to poor test performance.
abstract: A major human Q fever epidemic occurred in The Netherlands during 2007-2009. In response, all pregnant goats from infected herds were culled before the 2010 kidding season without individual testing. The aim of this study was to assess whether high risk animals from recently infected naive herds can be identified by diagnostic testing. Samples of uterine fluid, milk and vaginal mucus from 203 euthanized pregnant goats were tested by PCR or ELISA. The results suggest that testing followed by culling of only the high risk animals is not a feasible method for protecting public health, mainly due to the low specificity of the tests and variability between herds. The risk of massive bacterial shedding during abortion or parturition can only be prevented by removal of all pregnant animals from naive recently infected herds.
authors.affiliation: Department of Farm Animal Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, Yalelaan 7, 3584 CL Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Lenny
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Hogerwerf
authors.affiliation: Department of Farm Animal Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, Yalelaan 7, 3584 CL Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Gerrit
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Koop
authors.affiliation: Department of Farm Animal Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, Yalelaan 7, 3584 CL Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Don
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Klinkenberg
authors.affiliation: Department of Bacteriology and TSEs, Central Veterinary Institute of Wageningen UR, Edelhertweg 15, 8219 PH Lelystad, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Hendrik I J
authors.initials: HI
authors.lastname: Roest
authors.affiliation: Department of Small Ruminant Health, GD Animal Health, Postbus 9, 7400 AA Deventer, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Piet
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Vellema
authors.affiliation: Department of Farm Animal Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, Yalelaan 7, 3584 CL Utrecht, The Netherlands. Electronic address: m.nielen@uu.nl.
authors.forename: Mirjam
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nielen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000378:metabolism; D019540:Area Under Curve; D057138:Bacterial Shedding; D016997:Coxiella burnetii / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay / Q000662:veterinary*; D005260:Female; D015511:Goat Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000382:microbiology; D006041:Goats; D008892:Milk / Q000382:microbiology; D009093:Mucus / Q000382:microbiology; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000662:veterinary*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011778:Q Fever / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D012372:ROC Curve; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D014599:Uterus / Q000378:metabolism; D014621:Vagina / Q000378:metabolism / Q000382:microbiology
chemical_list: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial
keywords: Coxiella burnetii; Diagnosis; Public health; Q fever; Sensitivity and specificity