期刊名称：The International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine
印刷版ISSN：2008-6520
电子版ISSN：2008-6814
出版年度：2010
卷号：2
期号：1 January
语种：English
出版社：National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) Health Organization
摘要：Background: Leptospirosis, a spirochetal zoonosis, is considered an occupational disease of persons engaged in agriculture, sewage works, forestry, and butchery. Objective: To determine the environmental sources and the knowledge, attitude and practices for leptospirosis among butchers and slaughterhouse workers, as well as the seroprevalence of leptospirosis among cattle and pigs presented for slaughter. Methods: Using an interviewer administered questionnaire, all 110 butchers and other slaughterhouse workers in the parishes of Kingston and St. Andrew, Jamaica were surveyed. In addition, 179 blood samples from animals presented for slaughter were tested for anti- Leptospira antibodies using the microscopic agglutination test (MAT). Results: Analyses indicated that people with the studied occupations are at risk for developing leptospirosis due to several environmental risk factors that exist in slaughterhouses. Among the risk factors, limited knowledge of the disease and its transmission, lower educational level attained, younger age and unhealthy behaviors ( e.g. , hand washing and improper or lack of use of personal protective gears), presence of stray dogs and rodents, and inadequate maintenance of physical plants, were found to be important. Of the total number of animal samples tested, 20 (11%) were positive. Canicola and Hardjo (among cattle) and Bratislava (among pigs) were the major seroreactors. Conclusion: Butchers and slaughterhouse workers engaged in animal handling and slaughtering could be frequently exposed to leptospirosis, and hence control strategies targeting at these populations should be implemented.
