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An outbreak of East Coast Fever on the Comoros; a consequence of the import of immunised cattle from Tanzania?
No full textIn 2003 and 2004, a severe epidemic decimated the cattle population on Grand Comore, the largest island of the Union of Comoros. Fatalities started soon after the import of cattle from Tanzania. Theileria parva and its vector, Rhipicephalus appendiculatus, could be identified as the main culprits of the epidemic. Characterisation by multilocus genotyping revealed that the T. parva parasites isolated on the Comoros were identical to the components of the Muguga cocktail vaccine used in Tanzania to immunise cattle. Therefore, it is believed that East Coast Fever reached the Comoros while some of the imported livestock got infected in Tanzania by ticks of which the immature stadia fed on Muguga cocktail vaccinated animals. Since the Comorian government neither has the financial means nor the competent staff to pursue an adequate epidemiosurveillance, the danger exists that without external assistance and in a context of continuing globalisation more transboundary diseases will affect the Comorian livestock sector in the future
Red blood cell volume as a predictor of fatal reactions in cattle infected with Theileria parva Katete
No full textA comparison of mean corpuscular volume (MCV) and packed cell volume (PCV) was made between cattle undergoing lethal and non-lethal reactions following experimental infections with the apicomplexan protozoa, Theileria parva Katete. This work confirmed that anaemia occurs in infected animals. However, the fall in PCV was steeper in lethal reactions compared to non-lethal reactions. Our results show that animals with initially lower MCV values are more prone to fatal reaction, despite having normal PCV profiles. The study also found that small red blood cells are more likely to be infected with T. parva. These findings suggest that animals with a higher proportion of small red blood cells in circulation will be more likely to succumb to T. parva infections. The potential for using MCV as a predictor of the outcome of infection challenge is discussed
Foot-and-mouth disease non-structural protein serology in cattle: use of a Bayesian framework to estimate diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of six ELISA tests and true prevalence in the field
No full textThe diagnostic performance of six foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) assays for detection of antibodies to the non-structural proteins (NSP) of the FMD virus (FMDV) was estimated using a Bayesian analysis on field sera from cattle of unknown infection status originating from post-FMDV outbreak situations in Israel and Zimbabwe. Estimations of the disease prevalence in both populations were also obtained. The diagnostic sensitivity estimates did not differ between both field studies, although overall Bayesian estimates were markedly higher than those previously reported based on sera from comparable experimentally infected (vaccinated) cattle populations. All NSP-based assays demonstrated a lower diagnostic specificity when applied to the Zimbabwean sera compared to both published specificities and similar Bayesian specificity estimates derived for the Israeli dataset. In Israel, the disease prevalence was estimated at 23.9% (95% credibility interval: 19.5-28.8%), whereas 65.4% (59.0-72.5%) was found in Zimbabwe. The need for reliable diagnostic test performance estimates and the benefits of Bayesian analysis in obtaining them are also addressed
Environmental and health-related risk factors for Mycobacterium ulcerans disease (Buruli ulcer) in Benin
No full textWe conducted a case-control study to investigate the association between Buruli ulcer (BU) and environmental- and health-related behaviors in southern Benin. Hospital BU cases (N = 324) and sex- and age-matched neighborhood controls (N = 1,173) answered a questionnaire. Regular use of soap for washing, treating injuries with soap or antibiotic powder, and frequent contact with flowing water appeared protective against BU
Association between haemoglobin variants S and C and Mycobacterium ulcerans disease (Buruli ulcer): a case-control study in Benin
No full textThe definitive version is available at www3.interscience.wiley.comRisk factors for Buruli ulcer (BU) are poorly understood. We conducted a case-control study in southern Benin to investigate the association between haemoglobin variants S or C and BU, and particularly the association between haemoglobinopathies HbSS/SC and BU osteomyelitis. We compared the haemoglobin genotype of 179 patients with BU and 44 with BU osteomyelitis to that of 242 community controls. We found no evidence of an increased risk of BU according to the presence of haemoglobin variants S and/or C [odds ratio adjusted for sex, age, region of residence and ethnicity: 1.24 (95% CI: 0.80-1.93), P = 0.34]. Haemoglobin variants S and C are unlikely to play a role in the BU burden. However, haemoglobinopathies HbSS/SC were more frequent among BU osteomyelitis patients than among controls (6.8% vs. 1.0%, Fisher's exact P-value = 0.045), which may suggest that those disorders facilitate growth of Mycobacterium ulcerans in the bone matrix
Malaria burden among pregnant women living in the rural district of Boromo, Burkina Faso
No full textIn two cross-sectional surveys carried out in the rural health district of Boromo, Burkina Faso, malaria infection was evaluated in 295 pregnant women in May 2003 and 288 pregnant women in December 2003. Malaria prevalence, all P. falciparum infection, was higher in December (32.2%) than in May (11.9%) (P < 0.0001). In both surveys primigravidae had a significantly higher risk of infection than multigravidae (P < 0.0001). Such risk decreased significantly and progressively with gestational age, the highest risk being during the first trimester. Women who had not attended the antenatal clinic had also a significantly higher risk of malaria infection. Despite the high antenatal clinic attendance and the use (or misuse) of chloroquine chemoprophylaxis, malaria remains an important problem for pregnant women living in the rural district of Boromo. This requires a major effort by the health authorities to guarantee all pregnant women have access to and use preventive measures