Review on Q Fever in Small Ruminants and its Public Health Importance

Q fever is a disease caused by coxiella burnetii which is ubiquitous intracellular bacterial pathogen, with acute and chronic clinical manifestations. This bacterium is able to infect a wide range of animals, but cattle, sheep and goats are the principal reservoirs. Inhalation of contaminated aerosols is the main transmission route for humans. Q fever is a worldwide zoonosis, which may occur in sporadic as well as epidemic forms. Because it is highly infectious for humans, Q fever is an important zoonosis with veterinarian laboraratory workers, farmers and abattoir workers at risk. The spectrum of clinical manifestations in humans and animals are diverse, ranging from seroconversion without any clinical symptoms to fatal consequences. The acute infection in humans manifests as self-limiting febrile illness, pneumonia, or hepatitis, whereas endocarditis is the major manifestation in chronic cases. Infection in domestic animal is usually asymptomatic and remains unrecognized, but it may cause abortion, especially in sheep and goat. In Ethiopia, the existence of antibody against Coxiella burnetii was reported in goats and sheep slaughtered at Addis Ababa abattoir, and its peri-urban .or from milk and urine are the basis of confirmatory diagnosis of C. burnetii infection. Doxycycline and tetracycline is the recommended antibiotic for humans. Cotrimoxazole and rifampin are the drugs of choice for the patients allergic or contradicted to tetracyclines. Oxytetracycline in the last trimester of pregnancy is usually recommended for animals. Control of Q fever in humans is largely dependent upon the control of infection in animals. The risk for transmission can be decreased through attention to proper sanitation when dealing with parturient animals and ensuring proper pasteurization of milk products.