Brucellosis in Humans with the Approach of Brucella Species Contamination in Unpasteurized Milk and Dairy Products from Hamadan, Iran

Background and Objective: As the most important human food source, milk and dairy products may lead to infectious diseases due to non-compliance with health standards. Brucellosis is one of the critical zoonotic diseases that affect the human population. Humans are usually infected by Brucella spp. via contaminated milk and dairy products and direct contact with infected animals. Methods: This study was conducted to determine the Brucella spp. contamination rate of milk and dairy products in the rural and urban areas in the city of Hamadan, west of Iran, in 2018-2019. In this descriptive-analytical study, 291 samples of nonboiling milk (227), fresh cheese (43), and cream (21) were collected from dairy products suppliers in the urban (No=103), rural areas (No=162), and industrial regions (No=26). We collected 72 samples from sheep and goats and 219 specimens from cattle. Samples were randomly selected from the target centers. Results: The overall contamination rate of collected samples with Brucella spp. found to be 4.1%. The milk and dairy products contamination in urban areas was 0.9%, rural 6.6%, and industrial regions 0%. Furthermore, the contamination rate varied from 9.7% to 2.5% for small ruminants and large ruminants, respectively, which was significant (P=0.01). Conclusion: Given the importance of dairy consumption in the human diet and higher contamination of milk and dairy products taken from cattle, sheep, and goats with Brucella species, it is recommended that control and prevention programs in sheep and goats must be taken more seriously.