BMC Veterinary Research (Aug 2012)

A large seroprevalence survey of brucellosis in cattle herds under diverse production systems in northern Nigeria

  • Mai Hassan M,
  • Irons Peter C,
  • Kabir Junaidu,
  • Thompson Peter N

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/1746-6148-8-144
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 8, no. 1
p. 144

Abstract

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Abstract Background This study was carried out to investigate the status of brucellosis in cattle under various management systems in Adamawa, Kaduna and Kano states, northern Nigeria. Using multi-stage sampling, serum samples of 4,745 cattle from 271 herds were tested using the Rose-Bengal plate-agglutination test (RBPT) and positives were confirmed using a competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (c-ELISA). Results Prevalence estimates were calculated by adjusting for sampling weights and where possible for test sensitivity and specificity. Thirty-seven percent of all animals were RBPT positive, and after confirmation with c-ELISA the overall animal-level prevalence, adjusted for sampling weights, was 26.3% (95% CI, 22.1%-31.0%). Of the herds sampled, 210 (77.5%; 95% CI, 68.6%-84.5%) had at least one animal positive to both tests; this did not differ significantly between states (P = 0.538). Mean within-herd seroprevalence in positive herds was 30.2% (95% CI, 25.3%-35.1%) and ranged from 3.1% to 85.7%. Overall animal-level seroprevalences of 29.2% (95% CI, 22.5%-36.9%) n = 1,827, 23.3% (95% CI, 18.9%-28.3%) n = 1,870 and 26.7% (95% CI, 18.8%-36.7%) n = 1,048 were observed in Adamawa, Kaduna and Kano states, respectively (P = 0.496). A significantly higher seroprevalence was found in males (38.2%; 95% CI, 31.7%-45.2%) than in females (24.7%; 95% CI, 20.4%-29.5%) (P P P 7 years. Seroprevalence also varied between management systems (P Conclusion This is the first large study to assess the prevalence of bovine brucellosis over a wide geographic area of northern Nigeria, in a variety of management systems and using accurate tests. The seroprevalence of brucellosis was high, and higher than results of previous studies in northern Nigeria. The pastoral management systems of the traditional Fulanis may be encouraging the dissemination of the disease. Public enlightenment of the farmers about the disease, vaccination and appropriate national control measures are recommended.

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