Volume 5, Number 1—February 1999
Dispatch
Preventing Zoonotic Diseases in Immunocompromised Persons: The Role of Physicians and Veterinarians
Table 1
Survey of veterinarians
| Questions | Responses |
|---|---|
| How often do you encounter or discuss zoonotic diseases in your patient population? | |
| 1=Several times/day; 2=Daily; 3=Weekly; 4=Occasionally; 5=Never | = 3.02a (±0.05)b |
| How often do physicians contact you for advice on the animal aspects of transmission and risks of zoonotic diseases? | |
| 1=Several times/week; 2=Several times/month; 3=Several times/year; 4=Rarely; 5=Never | = 4.30 (±0.04) |
| How often do you contact physicians regarding a zoonotic disease? | |
| 1=Several times/week; 2=Several times/month; 3=Several times/year; 4=Rarely; 5=Never | = 4.21 (±0.04) |
| If you know that a client is immunocompromised, do you offer consultation on zoonotic disease prevention? | |
| - Yes | n=96c |
| - No | n=9 |
| - The situation has never arisen | n=205 |
| How much risk to immunocompromised patients is associated with owning or having contact with the following animals? | |
| 1=Highest risk to 5=Lowest risk | |
| - Reptile | = 2.28 (±0.09) |
| - Bird | = 2.49 (±0.07) |
| - Kitten (<6 months of age) | = 2.81 (±0.07) |
| - Puppy (<6 months of age) | = 3.02 (±0.07) |
| - Farm animals | = 3.05 (±0.07) |
| - Cat | = 3.28 (±0.06) |
| - Dog | = 3.86 (±0.06) |
aMean of all respondents.
bStandard error of the mean.
cAbsolute number of veterinarians answering "yes", "no" or "the situation has never arisen".
