Socio-economic impact of bovine brucellosis and the need for effective control strategies.

Brucellosis is a neglected zoonotic disease that significantly affects livestock-dependent countries with limited resources. Despite its impact, few studies have comprehensively examined its socio-economic consequences. The extent of these impacts varies by region, production systems, available resources, and the disease’s indirect health effects on humans. This review analyzed published studies to examine reported economic losses, risk factors, and protective measures, with the aim of informing control strategies. Prevalence of bovine brucellosis ranged widely, from 1.88 to 77.5% at the individual animal level and 1.9–26.3% at the herd level, with ELISA as the most common diagnostic tool. Identified risk factors included herd size, breed, age, abortion history, and mixed-animal farming. In contrast, vaccination, effective management, veterinary support, and farmers’ knowledge acted as protective elements. Economic loss estimates remain limited but suggest that brucellosis costs livestock sectors millions of dollars annually in affected regions. Such losses result from reduced productivity, reproductive failure, and market restrictions. Controlling brucellosis, therefore, holds critical importance for safeguarding farmers’ incomes and national economies. Understanding disease transmission pathways alongside farmers’ profit margins is essential to designing sustainable interventions. Evidence from episodic studies highlights that mass vaccination programs are cost-effective and yield significant benefits when evaluated from a societal perspective, encompassing both human and animal health. Hence, coordinated, well-informed control strategies are urgently needed to improve livestock productivity, protect public health, and ensure farmers’ economic stability while effectively addressing brucellosis.