CONICET | Buscador de Institutos y Recursos Humanos

The pathological consequences of exposure to the vaccine strain Brucella abortus S19 were evaluated in 30 employees from vaccine-manufacturing plants. Active brucellosis was diagnosed in 21 subjects, of whom only five recalled an accidental exposure. Clinical manifestations were mild, and only one patient presented a complication. After antimicrobial therapy, initially symptomatic patients either experienced clinical remission or had mild persistent symptoms. This is the first study reporting infection by B. abortus S19 among workers from vaccine-manufacturing plants, which in many cases was acquired from unnoticed exposures. Measures to improve the safety of B. abortus S19 handling should be implemented. of brucellosis among employees of a laboratory manufacturing the Rev-1 vaccine has also been reported [7]. In contrast, there are no reports of human brucellosis due to S19 or RB51 strains acquired within vaccine production plants. The goal of this study was to analyse the clinical, epidemiological and diagnostic aspects of workers with potential exposure to B. abortus S19 in laboratories producing the S19 vaccine in Argentina.