A retrospective study of the extensive eradication program for brucellosis outbreaks and control in Korea, 2002-2009

This study concerns the quantitative analysis of brucellosis outbreaks and the related risk factors and control programs for both domestic cattle and human brucellosis infections in Korea between 2002 and 2009. There were a total of 77,082 infections of bovine brucellosis (BB) in domestic cattle with a prevalence rate (PR) of 13.3 per 1,000 cattle; during the same period there were 620 cases of human brucellosis (HB) with a PR of 0.16 per 100,000 persons. Moreover, the correlation coefficient of brucellosis outbreaks between cattle and humans was highly significant (r = +0.985). The attack ratio of HB cases was 8.04 per 1,000 BB cases. The distribution of brucellosis outbreaks was concentrated in the southeast region of Korea (P < 0.01). Significantly more males were infected than females (86.9% versus 13.1%), and a high incidence of HB was observed in those aged more than 40 years (86.1%). The majority of HB cases occurred primarily among rural inhabitants (92.3%) and among famers and related workers (47.9%). Finally, all of the measures that were applied in the extensive eradication program for brucellosis outbreaks and control were based principally on an intensive test-and-slaughter policy and contributed significantly to the reduction in the outbreaks of brucellosis in Korea.