3,000 contract bacterial disease in China

More than 3,000 people in China have contracted the bacterial disease known as Malta fever following a leak from a lab last year, health officials said.

The outbreak originating from the Zhongmu Lanzhou biological pharmaceutical factory left 3,245 people sickened with brucellosis, the Health Commission of Lanzhou said.

Authorities have tested a total of 21,847 people in Gansu province, which has a population of 2.9 million, and another 1,401 people have preliminarily tested positive.

No fatalities have been reported.

People can contract brucellosis — also known as Mediterranean fever — by coming into contact with livestock such as sheep, goats, cows or camels infected with the Brucella bacteria, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.

Symptoms include fever, sweating, headache, fatigue and pain in muscles and joints.

The most common way to become infected is by eating or drinking unpasteurized or raw dairy products, but humans can also fall ill by breathing in the bacteria.