Leptospirosis: an important zoonotic diseasesis

Leptospirosis, the infection with Leptospira spp., is an apparent or unapparent disease of animals and man. It is caused by a continuously changing number of pathogenic leptospira species and serogroups. The accumulation of information in recent years on leptospirosis has shown that serovar distribution around the world is neither uniform nor stable. In other words, the most prevalent serovars in one country or area are not necessarily the same with those of another. Thus, before deciding the appropriate measures for prophylaxis of domestic animals and man in one area or country serovar distribution in nature must be determined. In the study of serovar distribution the role of wild life in the spread of Leptospira spp must also be accounted. Wide epidemiological investigations among domestic and wild animals will also define the role of these animals in human infections. Toward this aim, various national and international organizations have been created, one of which is the “International Leptospirosis Society” formed in 1994, disseminating current knowledge between all those studying an important and scientifically interesting microorganism. The disease is also included in the list of diseases surveyed by the wildlife Conservation Society through its Field Veterinary Program formed in 1989. With the above in mind, an attempt is made here to review a zoonosis increasingly emerging as a public health hazard having also an economic importance among food producing animals.