Brucellosis Suspicion is the Most Important Criterion for Diagnosis Particularly in Endemic Regions

INTRODUCTION: Brucellosis is a zoonotic infectious disease that remains endemic in developing countries. The purpose of this study is to emphasize the need for considering brucellosis as a diagnosis, since this disease has a high risk of complications among young patients when not treated appropriately. METHODOLOGY: A total of 88 brucellosis cases with blood cultures that were positive for the pathogen were evaluated retrospectively in this study. RESULTS: The patients included 33 males (37.5%) and 55 females (62.5%) with a median age of 8.9 years (range: 5-14 years). A total of 43.1% (n=38) of the cases included occupational exposure to animals as a possible infection source. The consumption of raw milk products, especially cheese, was present in 52.2% (n=46) of the cases. Clinically, 55 of the cases were acute (62.5%), 23 of the cases were subacute (26.2%) and 10 of the cases were chronic (11.3%). The distribution of the joint pain complaints was as follows: 62.5% (n=55) of patients reported hip pain, 22.7% (n=20) of patients reported knee pain, 11.4% (n=10) of patients reported lumbar-back pain and 3.4% (n=3) of patients reported pain in other joints. A total of 59.1% (n=52) of the cases had been examined by another doctor at least once and mistreated. CONCLUSION: Complication rates and the rate of chronic infection increase with delayed diagnosis, and clinical doubt is the most important criterion for diagnosis, particularly in endemic regions.