Milk-thirsty customers visit a self-serve goat milk cart in Binzhou, Shandong Province. Photo: CFP

A 2-year-old girl in Xi'an of Northwest China's Shaanxi Province suffered from brucellosis recently after drinking fresh goat milk squeezed and sold on the street. Experts said that brucellosis is a zoonosis, which can be transmitted to humans from animals or animal products, but won't pass from person to person.

Local market watchdog is reportedly conducting an investigation across the city to find the source.

The girl now has been discharged from hospital after treatment and is taking medicine at home, Hou Wei, an expert on respiratory diseases who made the diagnosis in the Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University (Xibei Hospital), told the Global Times on Friday.

Before that, she had continuous fever for days and even a convulsion, and was in a critical condition.

"Brucellosis is a zoonotic infectious disease caused by Brucella infection, which is commonly seen in sheep, cattle and pigs," Hou said, adding that "it can be spread to people through damaged skin and mucous membranes and digestive or respiratory tract if people touch the feces of these animals infected with the bacteria or consume their products like milk."

"But it won't pass from person to person," Hou noted. "The incubation period of the disease can possibly last from several weeks to months, which could be ignored by people."

Brucellosis is not common, but happens occasionally and mostly seen in pasturing or rural areas, and the number of cases have been increasing in recent years, Hou said.

There are now some mobile vendors selling goat milk squeezed on the spot in cities. Some people also believe drinking freshly squeezed milk is good for health.

"However, it is very risky to consume such milk as it is not known whether the animal has gone through quarantine inspection. If the animal is infected, it will be passed to more people," Hou noted.

Brucella has a strong ability to live in the external environment. It can survive six weeks in cream at 4 C, 30 days in frozen dairy products, and 50 to 100 days in fresh cheese. It can also survive in water, dry soil, animal skin and dairy products for several weeks to months, according to an article published by Xibei Hospital on Thursday.

The infection could cause great harm to human systems, with the acute cases manifested by fever, fatigue, hyperhidrosis, muscle and joint pain, and swelling of liver, spleen, and lymph nodes.

Children may only have fever symptoms in early stage, which are easy to be ignored.

Hou suggested the authorities reinforce supervision on the quarantine inspection on the livestock and the health of the keepers.