Published in Scientific Works. Series C. Veterinary Medicine, Vol. LXX, Issue 1
Written by Ralitsa RANKOVA, Gergana BALIEVA
Contaguous animal diseases that cause huge losses in livestock production and affect national economies are regulated at international level by the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) through the Terrestrial Animal Health Code. The Code lays down the rules for the listed animal diseases that must be reported to the WOAH and among these important diseases is Brucellosis. This is a contagious bacterial disease caused by several representatives from the Brucella family which are infectious for specific animal species, including the most common livestock animals like cattle, sheep and goats and swine. Moreover, Brucellosis has a high zoonotic potential and could infect humans as well. In order to trace and analyse the distribution of Brucella spp. in Europe over the span of a twenty-years period (2002-2022), we derived data from the ADIS (Animal Disease Information System) managed by the European Commission which showed that five European counties were infected with variations in the prevalence of Brucellosis among the reporting member states. Regarding the identified species, it can be noted that the following were found: the predominant species is Brucella melitensis, followed by Brucella suis, and lastly, Brucella abortus. For the purpose of explainig the measures for disease management and control of Brucellosis we examined the main documents from the relevant secondary legislation of the EU. For the studied period, it can be noted that the most outbreaks of brucellosis were registered on the territory of Italy - 21 outbreaks (Brucella melitensis) from March 2014 in sheep to December 2022 in goats, but in the other years it was also found in sheep and goats. For the same period with Brucella abortus, there were 18 outbreaks from March 2015 in cattle to June 2022 in cattle, but in 2020, they were found in sheep and goats. Brucella suis was not registered.
[Read full article] [Citation]
