Emerging zoonotic diseases.

Vol. 7, No. 3 Supplement, June 2001 Emerging Infectious Diseases 537 Emerging Zoonotic Bacterial and Parasitic Diseases Corrie Brown from the University of Georgia discussed 15 diseases common to humans and animals, with a brief synopsis of how each disease is transmitted from animals to humans, the major animal reservoirs, and factors influencing the emergence of these diseases as human pathogens. The most important factors for emerging zoonotic diseases are (1) the transportation of humans and animals to new areas, (2) increased contact between animals and humans, (3) changes in the environment and husbandry practices, (4) a larger immunocompromised population, (5) increased recognition of diseases as zoonotic in origin, and (6) the discovery of new organisms not previously recognized. Domestic pets can transmit Bartonella henselae, Sporothrix schenkii, Capnocytophaga carnimorsus, Echinococcus multilocularis (alveolar hydatid disease), leishmaniasis, Yersinia pestis (plague), and ehrlichiosis. Emerging zoonotic disease agents transmitted by food animals include enteropathogenic E. coli, Salmonella DT104 (which may have human origins), Campylobacter spp, and Streptococcus iniae (from farmed fish). The most common rat-transmitted disease in the United States is leptospirosis, which has a variety of serovars. Many of these diseases are difficult to diagnose and all of them can be fatal.