Prevalence Of Bovine Tuberculosis In Different Cattle Breeds In Dairy Farm In Egypt

Abstract

Due to direct economic repercussions on livestock and indirect consequences for human health, knowing the prevalence rates of bovine tuberculosis is essential to define an effective control strategy. Our study was performed in 32 dairy cattle farms as we subjected 10800 dairy cattle to the Single Intradermal Comparative Tuberculin skin Test (SICTT). The skin test was interpreted according to guidelines of the World Organization for animal health (OIE). Twenty five farms (78%) have reactors to the SICTT. We also studied the relation between physiological variables with breeds, pregnancy, lactation, size of farms and the other risk factors explained in the study. Out of the 10800 tested animals, 228 (2.1%) were reactors to the skin test. The factors identified as possibly enhancing the risk of bovine tuberculosis (bTB) were herd size, age of animal, farming (housing) conditions. Other factors including breed and physiological status of the animal did not contribute to tuberculin sensitivity. The finding that large size and intensively (often poorly) managed herds were at greater risk of bovine tuberculosis and suggests that significance of bTB is increasing in Egypt parallel to an increase in the dairy operation. This surely indicates that if measures are not taken promptly, the impact of the economy and public health could be enormous. It was concluded that bTB continues to infect animals in Egypt but the prevalence was moderate, nevertheless the continued threat of economic loss in animal industry due to the persistence of bTB that should not be ignored.

Comparative diagnosis of bovine tuberculosis using single intradermal cervical tuberculin technique, conventional methods, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and the gamma-interferon assay

“…Here, we report a higher prevalence of TB, perhaps due to limited implementation of biosecurity control and poor hygiene at the examined farms, where there was no clear plan to dispose of wastes and carcasses. The findings are also attributable to the management system, animal density, herd size, breeding, and differences in the geographical location that influence disease epidemiology [ 17 ].…”