Epidemiology of leptospirosis in dairy farm workers in the Manawatu. Part I: A cross-sectional serological survey and associated occupational factors

Authors: Blackmore DK, Harris RE, Schollum LM, Cook NR, Stoke JCJ, Willis AF, Mackintosh CG
Publication: New Zealand Veterinary Journal, Volume 28, Issue 12, pp 245-250, Dec 1980
Publisher: Taylor and Francis

Animal type: Cattle, Human, Livestock, Production animal, Ruminant
Subject Terms: Bacterial, Biosecurity, Clinical pathology, Diagnostic procedures, Disease surveillance, Epidemiology, Zoonosis, Disease/defect, Infectious disease, Public health
Article class: Scientific Article

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Abstract: A serological survey of 213 randomly chosen dairy farm residents in the Manawatu showed that 66 (34%) of the people who milked cows had leptospiral titres 1:24 by the Microscopic Agglutination Test. Forty-eight (72.7%) of these people had titres to hardjo, while 29 (43.9%) had titres to pomona. Dual hardjo/pomona titres occurred in 12 people. Ballum and copenhageni accounted for 8% of the titres found. Women milkers and farm residents who did not milk were all serologically negative. A third of the seropositive milkers had a history of clinical leptospirosis. Other factors which significantly correlated with leptospiral titres included the time spent in the dairy shed during milking, the wearing of shorts, the keeping of pigs for sale, and the number of years the individual had been working on a dairy farm. The type of milking shed and the size of the herd were interrelated and both showed strong trends towards a correlation with serological prevalence.

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