Objective To understand the epidemiological characteristics of human brucellosis in Xinjiang from 2021 to 2023 and provide evidence for the implementation of human brucellosis preventive and control measures.

Methods The incidence data of human brucellosis in Xinjiang from 2021 to 2023, excluding Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, were collected from China Disease Prevention and Control Information Management System. Suspected and re-reported cases were excluded. Descriptive epidemiological analysis was conducted using Excel 2021 to analyze the spatial distribution of reported human brucellosis cases.

Results A total of 18 094 cases of human brucellosis were reported in 14 prefectures and 95 counties/districts in Xinjiang from 2021 to 2023 with an average annual incidence rate of 23.33/100 000. In the reported cases, 70.32% were farmers. The cases were mainly reported in Ili, Changji, Kashgar, Aksu and Tacheng, accounting for 62.99% of the total cases. The reported cases from March to August accounted for 69.13% of the total cases. The cases were reported in all age groups, with the youngest case aged 28 days and the oldest case aged 97 years, and the cases reported in age group 30-60 years accounted for 73.40% of the total cases. The average annual incidence rate was 31.95/100 000 in men and 14.12/100 000 in women, with a male to female ratio of the cases of 2.42∶1.

Conclusion The incidence of human brucellosis was at a relatively high level in Xinjiang, with a wide case distribution. The disease mainly affected young and middle-aged farmers, and more cases were men. The incidence of human brucellosis had obvious seasonality with annual case peak during March - August.