TY - JOUR
T1 - Epidemiology of Epizootic Lymphangitis Among Carthorses in Ethiopia
AU - Abdela, Musse G.
AU - Teshale, Sori
AU - Gobena, Mesfin M.
AU - Zewde, Aboma
AU - Jaleta, Hawi
AU - Gumi, Balako
AU - Ameni, Gobena
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported by small amount of grant provided by the Addis Ababa University through its sixth Thematic Research Fund (2017/2018 academic year). We declare that the funding body did not contribute to the execution of any part of the study, interpretation of the results, and write up of this article.
Funding Information:
The authors are grateful to Aklilu Lemma Institute of Pathobiology, Addis Ababa University, for providing part of the necessary materials required for the study, and financial support. The owners of carthorses and associations are also acknowledged for their unreserved collaboration.
Publisher Copyright:
Copyright © 2021 Abdela, Teshale, Gobena, Zewde, Jaleta, Gumi and Ameni.
PY - 2021/12/10
Y1 - 2021/12/10
N2 - Epizootic lymphangitis caused by Histoplasma capsulatum variety farciminosum is a debilitating disease incurring considerable economic losses and affecting the welfare of carthorses. Understanding of its epidemiology is important for devising effective prevention and control measures. A cross-sectional study was conducted on 4,162 carthorses in 17 towns in Ethiopia between October 2018 and June 2019. Clinical and microscopic examinations, fungal culturing, and polymerase chain reaction were used to undertake this study. The overall prevalence of epizootic lymphangitis was 16.67% (95% CI: 15.55–17.84) in carthorses. Epizootic lymphangitis was detected in carthorses found in 16 of the 17 towns included in the study. The highest prevalence was recorded at Kombolcha Town (33.33; 95% CI: 27.54–39.52) whereas the lowest was recorded at Debre Birhan Town (0.00; 95% CI: 0.00–1.27). The results of univariable firth logistic regression analysis showed that the difference between the prevalence of Kombolcha and the prevalences of all the other towns except Holota and Shashemene were statistically significant. Statistically significantly lower prevalence was observed in other towns. Classification of the cases into different clinical forms showed that 87.18, 4.33, and 0.58% were cutaneous, ocular, and respiratory forms respectively, while the remaining 7.93% (55/694; 95% CI: 6.03–10.19) were classified as mixed form. In terms of the severity of the disease, 28.67, 60.52, and 0.81% were mild, moderate, and severe cases, respectively. The majority of the lesions (43.95%) were observed in the skin followed by forelimbs (14.55%) and neck region (14.27%). Higher mean annual temperature, lower annual rainfall, and higher humidity of the study towns were statistically significantly associated with an increased risk of epizootic lymphangitis. In conclusion this study revealed widespread occurrence of epizootic lymphangitis in carthorses yet a heterogeneous prevalence between towns. The veterinary and livestock authorities should take this into account while devising disease control.
AB - Epizootic lymphangitis caused by Histoplasma capsulatum variety farciminosum is a debilitating disease incurring considerable economic losses and affecting the welfare of carthorses. Understanding of its epidemiology is important for devising effective prevention and control measures. A cross-sectional study was conducted on 4,162 carthorses in 17 towns in Ethiopia between October 2018 and June 2019. Clinical and microscopic examinations, fungal culturing, and polymerase chain reaction were used to undertake this study. The overall prevalence of epizootic lymphangitis was 16.67% (95% CI: 15.55–17.84) in carthorses. Epizootic lymphangitis was detected in carthorses found in 16 of the 17 towns included in the study. The highest prevalence was recorded at Kombolcha Town (33.33; 95% CI: 27.54–39.52) whereas the lowest was recorded at Debre Birhan Town (0.00; 95% CI: 0.00–1.27). The results of univariable firth logistic regression analysis showed that the difference between the prevalence of Kombolcha and the prevalences of all the other towns except Holota and Shashemene were statistically significant. Statistically significantly lower prevalence was observed in other towns. Classification of the cases into different clinical forms showed that 87.18, 4.33, and 0.58% were cutaneous, ocular, and respiratory forms respectively, while the remaining 7.93% (55/694; 95% CI: 6.03–10.19) were classified as mixed form. In terms of the severity of the disease, 28.67, 60.52, and 0.81% were mild, moderate, and severe cases, respectively. The majority of the lesions (43.95%) were observed in the skin followed by forelimbs (14.55%) and neck region (14.27%). Higher mean annual temperature, lower annual rainfall, and higher humidity of the study towns were statistically significantly associated with an increased risk of epizootic lymphangitis. In conclusion this study revealed widespread occurrence of epizootic lymphangitis in carthorses yet a heterogeneous prevalence between towns. The veterinary and livestock authorities should take this into account while devising disease control.
KW - Ethiopia
KW - Histoplasma capsulatum variety farciminosum
KW - carthorses
KW - epidemiology
KW - epizootic lymphangitis
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85121973738&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85121973738&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3389/fvets.2021.762937
DO - 10.3389/fvets.2021.762937
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85121973738
SN - 2297-1769
VL - 8
JO - Frontiers in Veterinary Science
JF - Frontiers in Veterinary Science
M1 - 762937
ER -