MADINA: Health Affairs in Madina has set up a committee to urgently tackle the appearance of ten cases of Malta fever across the region, half of them in the area of Al-Hinakiya. Al-Watan Arabic daily reported that the cases, involving four men and six women, all Saudis working with cattle, were recorded in a single week beginning May 20 this year in Al-Hinakiya, Khaybar, Al-Eis, Mahd Al-Dhahab and Wadi Al-Fur'. Malta fever, or brucellosis, is an infectious disease caused by contact with animals carrying bacteria called brucella. It can also spread to humans through contact with infected meat or the placenta of infected animals, or through the consumption of unpasteurized milk or cheese. Symptoms include fever, abdominal and joint pain, sweating, headache, weakness ands weight loss.
