Leptospirose em pequenos ruminantes: situação epidemiológica atual no Brasil

Abstract

Leptospirosis in small ruminants is a disease that can lead to economic losses due to the occurrence of abortions, stillbirths and decreased milk production. The infection can be presented in acute, chronic and inapparent forms. In the acute infection, anorexia, depression, difficulty breathing, fever, hemoglobinemia and hemoglobinuria can occur. In the chronic form, abortions and stillbirths are common. Several recent serological surveys conducted in Brazil revealed frequencies of seropositivity ranging from 3.4 to 31.3% in goats, and from 0.7 to 34.6% in sheep. Most frequent reactions were obtained with the serovars Autumnalis, Grippotyphosa, Hardjo, Icterohaemorrhagiae and Pyrogenes. The microscopic agglutination test is the most used method to diagnose the infection. The control of leptospirosis in small ruminants is based on the identification of sources of infection, rodent control, control in animal purchasing and systematic immunization with inactivated vaccines that contain regional serovars of leptospires.KEYWORDS: Leptospira spp.; small ruminants; epidemiology; control; prevention. RESumO:A leptospirose em pequenos ruminantes é uma doença que pode causar perdas econômicas devido à ocorrência de abortamentos, natimortalidade e diminuição da produção de leite. A infecção pode se apresentar nas formas aguda, crônica e inaparente. Na forma aguda, pode ocorrer anorexia, depressão, dificuldade respiratória, febre, hemoglobinemia e hemoglobinúria. Na forma crônica, abortamentos e natimortalidade são comuns. Vários inqué-ritos sorológicos recentes conduzidos no Brasil apontaram frequências de soropositividade variando de 3,4 a 31,3% em caprinos, e de 0,7 a 34,6% em ovinos. Os sorovares reatores mais frequentes foram Autumnalis, Grippotyphosa, Hardjo, Icterohaemorrhagiae e Pyrogenes. O teste de soroaglutinação microscópica é o método mais empregado para o diagnóstico da infecção. O controle da leptospirose em pequenos ruminantes é baseado na identificação de fontes de infecção, controle de roedores, controle da aquisição de animais e imunização sistemática com vacinas inativadas que contenham sorovares de leptospiras regionais.Palavras-chave: Leptospira spp.; pequenos ruminantes; epidemiologia; controle; prevenção.

Frequency of and risk factors associated to Leptospira spp. Seropositivity in goats in the state of Sergipe, Northeastern Brazil

“…The titers obtained were low, and this result agrees with those of other Brazilian studies (SCHMIDT et al, 2002;LILENBAUM et al, 2007b;ARAÚJO NETO et al, 2010;HIGINO & AZEVEDO, 2014;COSTA et al, 2016). This result also indicated chronic infection, which may go unnoticed, as well as low exposure to the agent, suggesting that serological studies are an essential part of control measures in goat herds.…”

“…Twenty-five serogroups and approximately 300 serovars belonging to 25 serogroups can infect domestic animals, wildlife, and humans. On rural properties, transmission occurs primarily via the urine of infected animals (GOMES, 2013;HIGINO & AZEVEDO, 2014). Accordingly, rural workers in Jamaica who have contact with goats have a 3.52 times higher chance of presenting symptoms of the disease (KEENAN et al, 2010).…”

“…In the acute form of the disease, a sudden onset of fever, anemia, jaundice, and hemoglobinuria occur, leading to death (MARTINS et al, 2012;HIGINO & AZEVEDO, 2014).…”

Leptospirosis in native mixed-breed sheep slaughtered in a semiarid region of Brazil

“…Since sheep breeding is predominantly developed for families' income generation and subsistence, infectious diseases are an important factor contributing to low productivity (MARTINS et al, 2012). Among these, leptospirosis is relevant as it is widely disseminated and causes abortions, stillbirths or birth of weak offspring, as well as a decrease in milk production (HIGINO & AZEVEDO, 2014;ELLIS, 2015).…”

Epidemiological characterization and risk factors associated with leptospirosis and brucellosis in small ruminants sold at animal fair in the Sertão Region of Pernambuco State, a semiarid Region of Northeastern Brazil

“…Currently, however, this approach is unfeasible due to the lack of commercial availability for such vaccines. According to Higino and Azevedo (2014), information on the feasibility of small ruminant immunization is still limited, as the majority of the commercially available vaccines are intended for cattle, pigs, and dogs. However, rodent control and systematic immunization with inactivated vaccines containing the regional serotypes have shown efficacy in the control of leptospirosis in goats and sheep (FAINE et al, 1999).…”