Background & objectives: Rickettsial and other zoonotic diseases are a latent risk for workers of veterinary clinics. The objective of this study was to evaluate the prevalence and the associated risk factors of parasitosis caused by Rhipicephalus sanguineus, and to estimate the seroprevalence of rickettsial diseases in workers of urban veterinary clinics of Juárez city, México.
Methods: The participants of the study were recruited from 63 private veterinary clinics and hospitals. The serological analysis of the blood samples collected was carried out using immunofluorescence assay (IFA). The statistical analysis for prevalences, risk factors, and correlation was performed with the SAS program.
Results: In total, 167 veterinary workers were included in the study. The prevalence of tick bites was 40% (67/167), and the risk factors associated with the occurrence of bites included the activities performed in the clinic and the number of labour hours spent per week. About 21% (35/167) of participants were seropositive to R. rickettsii, 28% (47/167) to Ehrlichia chaffeensis, and 24% (40/167) to Anaplasma phagocytophilum. A correlation was observed between: the number of workers in the clinics and the proportion of tick bites (r² = 0.865); the prevalence of bites and the seropositivity of the participants to at least one pathogen (r² = 0.924); and the number of bites per individual and infection to pathogens (r² = 0.838).
Interpretation & conclusion: Workers in urban veterinary clinics are highly exposed to tick bites and, therefore, to the diseases they transmit. Hence, it is important to implement prevention measures and perform constant monitoring of these diseases.

中文翻译：

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城市兽医诊所工作人员蜱叮咬相关立克次体病的血清学证据

背景和目标：立克次体病和其他人畜共患病是兽医诊所工作人员的潜在风险。本研究的目的是评估由血红头虱引起的寄生虫病的流行率和相关危险因素，并估计墨西哥华雷斯市城市兽医诊所工作人员中立克次体病的血清流行率。
方法：研究的参与者来自 63 家私人兽医诊所和医院。使用免疫荧光测定法（IFA）对采集的血样进行血清学分析。使用 SAS 程序对患病率、风险因素和相关性进行统计分析。
结果：总共有 167 名兽医工作者被纳入研究。蜱叮咬的患病率为 40% (67/167)，与叮咬发生相关的危险因素包括在诊所进行的活动和每周花费的劳动小时数。约 21% (35/167) 的参与者对立克次氏体呈阳性，28% (47/167) 对恰菲埃里希体呈阳性， 24% (40/167) 对无形体 phagocytophilum呈阳性。观察到以下之间存在相关性：诊所的工作人员人数和蜱叮咬的比例（r ² = 0.865）；被咬的流行率和参与者对至少一种病原体的血清阳性（r ² = 0.924）；以及每个人的叮咬次数和对病原体的感染（r² = 0.838）。
解释和结论：城市兽医诊所的工作人员高度暴露于蜱叮咬，因此也暴露于它们传播的疾病。因此，重要的是要实施预防措施并对这些疾病进行持续监测。