Seroprevalence of Brucella in an elderly population in mid-Anatolia, Turkey

Sumer H., Sumer Z., Alim A., Nur N., Ozdemir L.

JOURNAL OF HEALTH POPULATION AND NUTRITION, vol.21, no.2, pp.158-161, 2003 (SCI-Expanded) identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 21 Issue: 2
  • Publication Date: 2003
  • Journal Name: JOURNAL OF HEALTH POPULATION AND NUTRITION
  • Journal Indexes: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus
  • Page Numbers: pp.158-161
  • Keywords: Brucella, brucellosis, Brucella melitensis, elderly, Turkey, ANTIBODIES, DIAGNOSIS, REGION
  • Sivas Cumhuriyet University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

Brucellosis is a widespread infectious disease in the mid-Anatolia regions of Turkey. This study investigated the prevalence of Brucella infection in elderly people of this region. In total, 750 elderly subjects were chosen by a simple random-sampling method. Blood samples were evaluated by the Brucella Wright agglutination test. Brucella seropositivity was detected in 24 (3.2%) of the 750 subjects. Although there was no statistical correlation between Brucella seropositivity and sex or educational level (p>0.05), seropositivity was statistically significant with subjects exposed to risk factors (p<0.001). It is concluded that Brucella infection is still an important public-health problem in the cities of mid-Anatolia.