Seroepidemiology of Toxoplasma gondii Among Pregnant Women Attending Antenatal Care in Northwest Ethiopia.

INTRODUCTION: Toxoplasmosis is a life-threatening disease in pregnant women, having social and economic impacts due to congenital toxoplasmosis. However, in Ethiopia, it is neglected zoonotic disease, which requires screening and identifying risk factors in pregnant women to plan a public health intervention. METHODS: This institutional-based cross-sectional study was employed from March to April 2019 to estimate the seropositivity and assess potential risk factors for T. gondii among pregnant women attending antenatal care in four public hospitals in Northwest Ethiopia. Four hundred and one pregnant women were recruited to collect serum samples. Toxoplasma gondii antibodies were tested using Toxo-Latex slide agglutination test. RESULTS: Thus, the overall seropositivity for T. gondii was found 70.8% (95% CI: 66.3-75.5). Multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that the average monthly income, occupational status, habits of handwashing practices after handling raw meat, water sources for drinking and agroclimatic situations revealed significant (p < 0.05) effects on seropositivity for T. gondii in pregnant women. CONCLUSION: This survey showed high seropositivity for T. gondii among pregnant women in Northwest Ethiopia. Therefore, further studies on bioassay, isolation and genotype of the pathogen are crucial. It also requires action to prevent and control the infection with T. gondii in pregnant women, which poses a potential threat to a foetus.

Bovine and equine trypanosomosis in Northwest Ethiopia: Prevalence, density of vectors and control measures.

A cross-sectional study was carried out from November 2016 to May 2017 in selected districts of Northwest Ethiopia (Jawi, South Achefer, Dembecha and Jabitehenan) with the aim of determining the prevalence of bovine and equine trypanosomosis, estimating the apparent density of vectors and assessing the effectiveness of control measures of the disease. A total of 1257 animals of which 803 bovine and 454 equine were examined for the determination of prevalence using blood sample collected from ear vein of animals. The buffy coat technique was employed to determine the prevalence and the packed cell volume (PCV) value. During sampling animals were categorized into age, body condition score, sex and hair coat color. A total of 40 monoconical traps 10 per district were deployed to estimate the apparent density of vectors. To assess control measures representative number of farmers were interviewed with a prepared questionnaire and using secondary data from veterinary offices. The overall prevalence of trypanosomosis was 7.47% and 4.40% for bovine and equine species, respectively. The prevalence of bovine trypanosomosis was 9.46%, 6.13%, 8.11% and 5.98% while prevalence in equine was 7.8%, 5.3%, 2.7% and 1.8% in Jawi, South Achefer, Dembecha and Jabitehenan districts, respectively. Significance differences in the prevalence of trypanosomosis were observed in hair coat color, age and body condition score in bovine while only body condition was significant in equine. The mean PCV value of parasitemic animals was significantly (P < .001) lower than that of aparasitaemic animals. The apparent densities of vectors were 1.04, 0.97, 0.32 fly/trap/day for Glossina, Stomoxys and Tabanus respectively. Glossina m. submorsitans and G. tachinoides were the species of tsetse identified. The questionnaire response indicated that trypanosomosis was found to be a serious constraint on livestock health in the study areas. The application of continuous trypanosomosis control measures particularly in Jawi and South Achefer districts which were showed an increasing trend in livestock number might be attributed to control effectiveness. In conclusion the presence of trypanosomes and potential vectors necessitate the application of sustainable and integrated control methods in the study areas.

Cryptosporidium infection in bovine calves: prevalence and potential risk factors in northwest Ethiopia.

OBJECTIVE: Cryptosporidium is an enteric protozoan organism that causes gastrointestinal disorders in different animals, mainly in calves. The parasite has also a zoonotic importance of children and immunocompromised patients. However, data are limited to northwest Ethiopia. Therefore, we conducted a cross-sectional survey from October 2014 to April 2015 to estimate the prevalence of Cryptosporidium infection and to identify potential risk factors in bovine calves in northwest Ethiopia. RESULTS: Out of the 360 examined calves, Cryptosporidium oocysts were recorded in 67 (18.6%) calves. Risk factors such as age, hygiene, faecal consistency, feed source, water source and contact with other domestic animals were significantly (P < 0.05) affected the occurrence of Cryptosporidium infection. However, significant variations (P > 0.05) were not recorded between Cryptosporidium infection and gender, body condition score, breed and study sites. Using multivariable analysis, age, feed source, water source, hygiene and close contact with other domestic animals were recognized as potential risk factors for the occurrence of Cryptosporidium infection. This study clearly figures out that Cryptosporidium infection is prevalent in the study area. Therefore, further studies, extension services and community education are recommended to adopt an integrated control approaches.