Exposure of South African Abattoir Workers to Coxiella burnetii

Abattoir workers may contract Q fever by inhalation of bacteria in aerosols generated by slaughtering livestock, or in contaminated dust. We estimated the seroprevalence of and examined the associated factors in a survey of South African abattoir workers. seropositivity was determined by detection o...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Tropical medicine and infectious disease 2022-02, Vol.7 (2), p.28
Main Authors: De Boni, Liesl, Mall, Sumaya, Msimang, Veerle, de Voux, Alex, Rossouw, Jennifer, Frean, John
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
abattoir workers
Antibodies
Antigens
Asymptomatic
Bacteria
Cattle
Chronic fatigue syndrome
Coxiella burnetii
Epidemics
Illnesses
Infections
Infectious diseases
Laboratories
meat workers
Occupational diseases
Q fever
Q fever prevalence
Questionnaires
Serology
seroprevalence
Sheep
Zoonoses
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Summary:Abattoir workers may contract Q fever by inhalation of bacteria in aerosols generated by slaughtering livestock, or in contaminated dust. We estimated the seroprevalence of and examined the associated factors in a survey of South African abattoir workers. seropositivity was determined by detection of IgG antibodies against phase II antigen. Logistic regression, adjusted for clustering and sampling fraction, was employed to analyze risk factors associated with seropositivity. Among 382 workers from 16 facilities, the overall seroprevalence was 33% (95% confidence interval (CI): 28-38%) and ranged from 8% to 62% at the facility level. Prolonged contact with carcasses or meat products (odds ratio (OR): 4.6, 95% CI: 1.51-14.41) and prior abattoir or butchery work experience (OR: 1.9, 95% CI: 1.13-3.17) were associated with seropositivity. In contrast, increasing age and livestock ownership were inversely associated. Precautions to protect abattoir personnel from Q fever are discussed.
ISSN:2414-6366
2414-6366
DOI:10.3390/tropicalmed7020028