{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,31]],"date-time":"2025-12-31T11:55:50Z","timestamp":1767182150077,"version":"build-2238731810"},"update-to":[{"DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pntd.0013525","type":"new_version","label":"New version","source":"publisher","updated":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,19]],"date-time":"2025-09-19T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1758240000000}}],"reference-count":47,"publisher":"Public Library of Science (PLoS)","issue":"9","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,15]],"date-time":"2025-09-15T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1757894400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100010719","name":"Pakistan Agricultural Research Council","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["AS 173 (vide F. No. 3-141\/2019 (ALP)-P&DD-PARC dated 09-10-2020)"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["AS 173 (vide F. No. 3-141\/2019 (ALP)-P&DD-PARC dated 09-10-2020)"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100010719","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.plosntds.org"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["PLoS Negl Trop Dis"],"abstract":"\n Background<\/jats:title>\n Brucellosis is an important zoonotic disease which causes stillbirth and abortion in pregnant women. It remains undiagnosed due to nonspecific symptoms like febrility, a very common ailment sign. Accordingly, this study was conducted to determine the seroprevalence and risk-determinants of brucellosis among pregnant women presented with febrile condition to healthcare facilities of Vehari and Lodhran regions of southern Punjab-Pakistan.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Methods<\/jats:title>\n \n For this cross-sectional study, a total of 250 pregnant women with febrile condition were approached. Of these, 200 willing women were included in this study. Blood samples of participants were analyzed for sero-detection of brucellosis using serum agglutination test (SAT) and commercially available indirect-ELISA kits (sensitivity and specificity>95%) followed by detection of\n Brucella<\/jats:italic>\n (\n B<\/jats:italic>\n .) species using PCR. Univariate and multivariate analyses were employed to determine the risk factors associated with brucellosis.\n <\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Results<\/jats:title>\n \n Overall seropositivity rate of brucellosis by SAT in study population was 18% whereas ELISA revealed the seroprevalence rate of 12% (n\u2009=\u200924\/200). PCR findings showed the presence of\n B<\/jats:italic>\n .\n abortus<\/jats:italic>\n and\n B<\/jats:italic>\n .\n melitensis<\/jats:italic>\n in seropositive participants. Analysis revealed that nutritional status (P\u2009=\u20090.037, OR=0.2431), educational status (P\u2009=\u20090.049, OR=0.2168), contact with\n Brucella<\/jats:italic>\n -susceptible animals (P\u2009=\u20090.009, OR=10.5142), abortion history (P\u2009=\u20090.012, OR=8.7308), raw milk\u2019s consumption (P\u2009=\u20090.002, OR=37.1499) and lack of disease awareness (P\u2009<\u20090.001, OR=0.0340) were significantly associated risk factors with brucellosis. Data regarding clinical manifestations revealed the highest frequency (87.50%) of fatigue with general weakness and the lowest one of night sweats (20.83%) in seropositive women.\n <\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Conclusions<\/jats:title>\n Brucellosis is prevalent in febrile pregnant women of study area. It is suggested to devise disease control\/prevention measures which may include but not limited to enhancing awareness about disease-dynamics, improving disease diagnostic facilities and immunization of susceptible animals from where disease originate.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pntd.0013525","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,15]],"date-time":"2025-09-15T17:45:42Z","timestamp":1757958342000},"page":"e0013525","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pntd.corrections_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":1,"title":["Exploring the status of brucellosis in pregnant women presented with febrile illness at different healthcare facilities of Vehari and Lodhran zones of Pakistan"],"prefix":"10.1371","volume":"19","author":[{"given":"Syed Muhammad Tauseef","family":"Shafqat","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7802-3259","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Mian Muhammad","family":"Awais","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Ulas","family":"Acaroz","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Masood","family":"Akhtar","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Abdul Sammad Ali Khan","family":"Shirwany","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Imran","family":"Rasool","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Naseer Ali","family":"Shah","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"340","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,15]]},"reference":[{"issue":"8","key":"pntd.0013525.ref001","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pntd.0005692","article-title":"Caprine brucellosis: A historically neglected disease with significant impact on public health","volume":"11","author":"CA Rossetti","year":"2017","journal-title":"PLoS Negl Trop Dis"},{"key":"pntd.0013525.ref002","article-title":"Perspective chapter: zoonosis \u2013 brucellosis a clinically relevant bacterial disease.","volume-title":"Current topics in zoonoses","author":"MM Murhekar","year":"2024"},{"issue":"1","key":"pntd.0013525.ref003","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","DOI":"10.1128\/CMR.00073-19","article-title":"Laboratory Diagnosis of Human Brucellosis","volume":"33","author":"P Yagupsky","year":"2019","journal-title":"Clin Microbiol Rev"},{"issue":"1","key":"pntd.0013525.ref004","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"170","DOI":"10.3390\/microorganisms13010170","article-title":"Animal Brucellosis in Egypt: Review on Evolution, Epidemiological Situation, Prevalent Brucella Strains, Genetic Diversity, and Assessment of Implemented National Control Measures","volume":"13","author":"AMS Menshawy","year":"2025","journal-title":"Microorganisms"},{"key":"pntd.0013525.ref005","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"211","DOI":"10.1016\/j.prevetmed.2015.03.013","article-title":"Economic losses occurring due to brucellosis in Indian livestock populations","volume":"119","author":"BB Singh","year":"2015","journal-title":"Prev Vet Med"},{"key":"pntd.0013525.ref006","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"392","DOI":"10.1016\/j.vetmic.2009.06.021","article-title":"Brucellosis: a re-emerging zoonosis","volume":"140","author":"MN Seleem","year":"2010","journal-title":"Vet Microbiol"},{"key":"pntd.0013525.ref007","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"660508","DOI":"10.3389\/fpubh.2021.660508","article-title":"Animal and Human Brucellosis in Pakistan","volume":"9","author":"T Jamil","year":"2021","journal-title":"Front Public Health"},{"issue":"5","key":"pntd.0013525.ref008","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"539","DOI":"10.1111\/tmi.12856","article-title":"Human-to-human transmission of Brucella - 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