[Tuberculosis in alpacas; a zoonosis as an imported disease]

In the Netherlands, in 1988, a micro-epidemic of tuberculosis in alpacas recently imported from Peru prompted health authorities to initiate investigation of human and animal contacts. Although the animal trainer and his assistant suffered from pulmonary tuberculosis, they turned out to be infected by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, while the animals later proved to be infected by M. bovis. The alpacas' caretaker and a laboratory technician present at the autopsy, were probably infected by animal contact. Elsewhere in the country, three more alpacas were reported with tuberculosis at the time; this initiated a large-scale investigation among alpacas, llamas etc., but no further cases were detected. The possibility of imported zoonoses, especially after 1992, is discussed.