Objective: The tularemia is a zoonotic infectious disease caused by a bacteria that is named Francisella tularensis. Rodent animals like rabbits, rats and squirrels are primer sources of the disease. The aim of this study is the investigation of tularemia frequency by microagglutination method in hunters in Elazıg and its vicinity.

Materials and Method: Five cc venous blood was taken from 60 persons belonging to the risk group, who were dealing with hunters, engaged animals and/or its products, and 50 persons from the control group. Blood was centrifuged at 5000 rpm for 5 minutes to separate the sera. F.tularensis Ig G was investigated by microagglutination method in these sera.

Results: A total of 110 serum samples (60 from the risk group, 50 from the control group) were used. Two individuals (3.3%) who were included in the risk group were found to have IgG positivity to 1/2560 titrated F.tularensis. Antibody positivity was not detected in the control group. Seropositivity was found to be statistically significant (p <0.05) between the patient and control groups (p =0.000).

Conclusion: According to this study, Tularemia in Elazığ and its vicinity could be an important public health problem. Tularemia needs to be considered in the evaluation of clinically compatible patients. This study has shown that extensive studies are needed.