Sero-epidemiology of Brucella Infection and its Public Health Significance in Fentale District Oromia Region, Ethiopia
No Thumbnail Available
Date
2025
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Addis Abeba University
Abstract
Brucellosis is a highly neglected, economically devastating zoonotic disease caused by Brucella species. In pastoral settings like Fentale, disease transmission is profoundly linked to close interaction between humans and livestock, the consumption of raw dairy products and unsafe handling of abortion cases. Despite its public health and economic importance, the specific sero-prevalence and associated risk factors of brucellosis in Fentale district remain under-documented. A cross-sectional study was conducted in Fentale district, east Shewa zone of Oromia Region, Ethiopia to investigate the seroprevalence and associated risk factors of brucellosis in camels, small ruminants, cattle and humans from December, 2018 to October, 2022. A total of 324 camels, 384 sheep and goats, 384 cattle and 210 human serum samples were collected and tested for brucellosis antibodies using serological tests (Rose Bengal plate test, complement fixation test and competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay). Questionnaires were also administered to livestock herders and human patients to assess their knowledge about brucellosis and other zoonotic diseases, the habits of animal product consumption and handling, and dead animal/aborted fetus disposal practices. The overall individual animal-level sero-prevalences were 9.6% (95% CI: 6.5 13.0), 2.6% (95% CI: 1.0-4.2) and 1.3% (95% CI: 0.3-2.6) in camels, small ruminants and cattle, respectively. The seroprevalence recorded in febrile human patients visiting health centers was 2.4% (95% CI: 0.5-4.8). Herd size in camels, sex and flock size in small ruminants, and parity and history of abortion in cattle were found significantly associated risk factors with brucellosis sero-positivity (p <0.05). Accordingly, camels and small ruminants in the large herd/flock category were found at higher risk of Brucella infection than their respective categories. Similarly, cattle with multiple parity and history of abortion were more tested positive for brucellosis than their respective categories. In humans, higher education level was surprisingly found associated with higher sero-positivity (p <0.05). This suggests that even educated individuals, despite possessing some knowledge about the risks and transmission of the disease, are less likely to comply with practices that minimize Brucella infection. However, these results should be interpreted cautiously given the limited sample size. The questionnaires survey in camel owners indicated that 98.5% of them did not know about brucellosis, they usually consume whole milk without boiling and abortion materials are handled with bare hands, and they do not safely destroy these materials. Similarly, in cattle owners about 74.5% of the respondents did not know that they can get any disease from animals, 86.4% and 90% of them have no information on brucellosis as animal disease and human disease, respectively. Moreover, 96.4% of the cattle owners drink raw milk and almost all informed abortion materials are handled with bare hands, and they do not safely discard these materials. Abortion materials are usually left for dogs and wild carnivores. In the case of human patients sampled at health centers, 70.0% of them had no knowledge on brucellosis and its means of transmission, and 44.3% and 36.2% of them have the habit of consuming raw and raw/boiled milk, respectively. Similar to animal owners, human patients informed that abortion materials are handled with bare hands and not safely discarded. In conclusion, this study demonstrated that brucellosis is prevalent both in livestock and humans, and hence brucellosis should be considered in the differential diagnosis of febrile patients. Moreover, traditions such as unsafe handling and disposal of abortion materials and consumption of raw milk are likely to play roles in the transmission of brucellosis in the study area. Therefore, there is a need for implementation of better management practices, typing of infecting strains, culling of positive animals and increasing public awareness on brucellosis.
Description
Keywords
Bovine brucellosis, camel brucellosis, c-ELISA, CFT, Fentale, human brucellosis, RBT, risk factor, sero-prevalence, small ruminant brucellosis.