Prepared by Jill
Shelley and Michael Dennis
Kansas State University Research and Extension
If you
work around livestock, you share several things with the animals:
space, air and even diseases. Up to 120 diseases that can
be shared between humans and animals have been identified.
The diseases that animals carry and spread to humans are known
as zoonoses. "The risk to humans may be great or small depending
on the disease and the situation," says Lowell Breeden, Kansas
State University Extension veterinarian.
Of the
120 identifiable zoonotic diseases, Breeden says leptospirosis
is very common. "It localizes in the bladder or kidney of
infected animals. People become infected by contact with the
organism through infected material or urine. One way you can
catch it is swimming in contaminated water. The organism enters
through broken skin, through your eyes or mouth."
Salmonella
is also a common known zoonotic diseases. This is often associated
with poorly cooked poultry, raw eggs and egg products, raw
milk and milk products, meat and meat products. "Personal
hygiene and cooking food at 155 degrees or higher helps to
reduce the risk of catching a disease from food," says Breeden.
One
of the methods used to prevent the spread of bacteria from
animals to humans is antibiotics. The proper use of antibiotics
should help keep your livestock healthy. However, Breeden
says antibiotics aren't always the answer. "Some bacteria
are resistant to antibiotics and antibiotics are not effective
against viruses."
Another
zoonotic disease Breeden says to be aware of is toxoplasmosis.
"In sheep this virus often causes abortions." Other carriers
include cattle, swine, goats and chickens. However, cats are
the main carriers and pose a real threat for some women. A
pregnant woman who has never had toxoplasmosis is at greater
risk of miscarrying or having a baby afflicted with some birth
defect if she becomes infected during pregnancy.
"Women
are exposed to toxoplasmosis when cleaning a litter
box or working in the garden around where a cat may deposit
urine or fecal material." Breeden says the organism has to
live outside a cat's body three days before it becomes infective.
"If you clean the litter box once a day there should be very
little health risk. If it's cleaned only once a week the risk
is much higher. You should also wear rubber gloves when cleaning
the litter box or working in the area where cats deposit waste."
Tuberculosis
and brucellosis. Tuberculosis used to be a problem in
dairy animals and brucellosis would occasionally occur through
occupational exposure while butchering hogs. According to
Breeden the number of tuberculosis and brucellosis cases from
food and milk is low because of testing programs and pasteurization.
Tularemia.
A plague-like disease of humans and animals. May be contracted
in any county of Kansas. "Sixty percent of cases are transmitted
by tick bite from any of several tick species. Other cases
are contracted from contact with blood, saliva, or fresh animal
pelts of infected animals when skinning rabbits, squirrels,
muskrats, raccoons, or other wild animals or from bites or
scratches by a domestic cat. Signs of disease include headache,
fever, swollen and tender lymph glands, and sometimes a generalized
skin rash. Onset is usually two to 14 days after exposure.
Tularemia is fatal in 2 to 4 percent of human cases. Early
diagnosis and treatment are critical. There are typically
four to 10 cases per year in Kansas," says Mock.
Tetanus:
People who work around any type of livestock should keep their
tetanus vaccinations up to date. The spores that cause tetanus
are found in soil contaminated by horse feces. These spores
can live in soil for several years. For tetanus to develop in
animals and humans, the organism must gain entrance through
broken skin, such as a wound. According to Breeden, "In the
past it was recommended you get a tetanus vaccination every
year. That is now extended to ten years. But any more if you
have had a vaccination within the past year and go to a doctor
with a severe enough cut chances are he will recommend you get
another vaccination."
Rocky
Mountain Spotted Fever: Carried by ticks. Breeden says
it occurs in other areas more often then in the Rocky Mountains
and can occur throughout the U.S. Pets and people are the
carriers of the infected ticks between different parts of
the country. The best prevention is to check yourself once
or twice a day for ticks if you have been in a heavily wooded
or grassy area. Kansas State University Extension entomologist
Don Mock notes that the onset of rocky mountain spotted fever
is within 10 to 12 days of a tick bite. "Early signs are flu,
headache, fever, nausea, lack of appetite, extreme fatigue,
and perhaps a stiff neck. A rash may occur on palms, soles
or wrist area. Fatalities most frequently are the result of
tardiness in seeking medical attention. From 20 to 30 cases
per year were reported in Kansas during the 1980s, but increased
awareness of ticks and personal protection efforts have recently
reduced the number of cases to less than lO per year."
Lyme
Disease: From 20 to 30 cases per year are reported in
Kansas. "Possibly several dozen more cases are not reported,"
says Mock. "The majority of cases occur in the eastern one-third
of the state. Exposure is exclusively through the bites of
certain tick species in or within a mile or so of wooded streambeds
or lake shores. These various species most commonly bite during
fall and springtime. Early signs of infection usually include
a rash spreading from the bite site from four to 14 days after
the tick is removed. Headache, fatigue, muscular pain, swollen
joints, and nervous system involvement may occur early on
or may begin several months later. Early diagnosis is difficult
and seldom certain, but early treatment is crucial to full
recovery."
Mock
recommends the following for protection from ticks:
- Avoid
tall grass and brushy areas as much as possible in tick
season (April-September).
- Use
repellents. Apply to top area of socks and pantlegs.
- As
soon as practical after activity in tick infested areas,
check yourself for ticks. Have someone check your scalp
and the back of your neck. Search closely
- Immature
ticks (larvae and nymphs) may be mistaken for freckles or
scabs.
Disclaimer
and Reproduction Information: Information in NASD does not
represent NIOSH policy. Information included in NASD appears
by permission of the author and/or copyright holder. More
NASD Review: 04/2002
This
document is extracted from
MF-1085
'Health Concerns in Agriculture': A tabloid published by Extension
Agricultural Engineering, Kansas State University, Manhattan,
Kansas. Publication date: October 1993.
Prepared
by Jill Shelley and Michael Dennis, Educational Materials
Specialist, Cooperative Extension, Kansas State University,
Manhattan, Kansas.
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