Brucellosis in Egyptian female patients

ABSTRACT

Over six months, 129 consecutive brucellosis cases were diagnosed in females attending the outpatients' clinics the females in Al-Azhar and Ain Shams Universities Hospitals. Their ages ranged between 12-65 years old. 113 [87.6%] gave history of raw milk consumption, 13 [10%] gave history of home slaughtering of sheep, 2 [1.5%] gave history of animal contact, and one patient gave history of abortion, that partner had brucellosis. A total of 61.2% of patients gave serum agglutination test of 1 640, who suffered acute or subacute infection. Titers of 1320 [38.8%] were found in the majority of chronic cases. Causes of endemic parasitosis were excluded. Symptoms were fever [79.5%], headache [72.4%], generalized arthralgia [65.3%], sweating [65.3%], chills [63.8%], backache [34.6%], abdominal pain [27.5%], loss of appetite [25.5%] lassitude [17.2%], myalgia [14.2%], monoarthralgia [7.9%]. Spinal involvement was in 15% patients, who had chronic brucellosis. 32/35 were successfully treated with a combination of streptomycin and tetracycline, 17/21 with streptomycin and septrin, 38/43 with tetracycline and septrin, and 26/26 [100%] with rifampicin and tetracycline or septrin, which treated all resistant patients