Description
Brucella ssp. are gram-negative amotile bacteria which live as intracellular parasites in a wide spectrum of farm animals. Human infection is mainly caused by Brucella melitensis ("Malta fever"), Brucella abortus ("Morburs Bang"), Brucella suis and Brucella canis. This bacteria, which can be transmitted by infected animals (zoonosis), their excrements and contaminated food, most often causes moderate or high fever. Undulating fever with afebrile intervals are characteristic for Brucella melitensis and Brucella suis infections.
Accurate diagnosis of Brucellosis most often relies on direct detection of the pathogen or detection of specific antibody response in serum or CSF. Direct pathogen detection in culture systems can be performed with samples of blood, bone marrow, synovial fluid or urine. More rapid results can be obtained with serological methods: agglutination, coombstest, Complement Fixation Test (CFT)