ABSTRACT
Campylobacteriosis is a zoonotic disease which has a worldwide public health impact. The disease is endemic in Egypt; however, the epidemiology in animals and humans has not been fully characterized. The objective of this study was to compare the risk of Campylobacter faecal carriage in children exposed to Campylobacter-infected vs. non-infected backyard poultry and to identify risk factors for a backyard being classified as infected. A total of 103 households which owned backyard poultry were sampled from a rural community in Egypt. Within these households 379 poultry and 106 children were tested for C. jejuni and C. coli; 23·5% and 5·5% of poultry were positive for C. jejuni and C. coli, respectively. In the studied households; 12·3% of children were positive for C. jejuni, and 2·8% were positive for C. coli. Using logistic regression, households with poultry positive for C. jejuni had 3·86 (95% confidence interval 1·0-15·0) times the odds of having children positive for C. jejuni compared to those housed with poultry which all tested negative. Backyard poultry may present a transmission route of C. jejuni to children. Backyards with poor cleaning and disinfection, wet litter and manure disposed of within the backyard had increased odds of being positive for C. jejuni. Enhancing biosecurity and management in poultry backyards may reduce the risk of the disease.
Subject(s)
Campylobacter Infections/epidemiology , Poultry Diseases/epidemiology , Poultry/microbiology , Zoonoses/epidemiology , Adolescent , Animals , Campylobacter/classification , Campylobacter/isolation & purification , Campylobacter Infections/microbiology , Campylobacter Infections/veterinary , Child , Cohort Studies , Egypt/epidemiology , Feces/microbiology , Humans , Poultry Diseases/microbiology , Risk Factors , Zoonoses/microbiologyABSTRACT
The aim of current study was to investigate the epidemiology of Hepatitis E virus (HEV) in humans and geographically matched food animals as a novel zoonotic assessment in Egypt. Blood samples were collected from patients who had a history of jaundice and attended to fever and general hospitals. Animal blood samples were collected from cows, buffaloes, sheep and goats convenient to HEV seropositive humans. Enzyme Immuno Assay (EIA) protocol was used to determine IgG anti-HEV. Sex and pregnancy were investigated as potential risk factors for HEV infection. Of 134 examined humans, 51 (38.1%) were positive for IgG anti-HEV. The males showed 26.8% seropositivity while the recorded female seropositivity was 50.8%, with a significant difference at P = 0.005, Odds Ratio (OR) = 0.35 at 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.17-0.73. There was a significant difference at P = 0.02 between seropositivity in pregnant (25%) and non-pregnant women (59.6%); OR was 0.23 (95% CI: 0.06-0.81). Anorexia was the most common symptom whereas paraesthesia and back pain were the least within icteric seropositive HEV humans. Hepatitis E virus seropositivity was recorded in 21.6%, 14%, 4.4% and 9.4% from examined cows, buffaloes, sheep and goats, respectively. The infected food animals were convenient to positive HEV humans who may declare the epidemiological picture of potential zoonotic HEV.
