PREVALENCE OF PORCINE CYSTICERCOSIS AMONG SCAVENGING PIGS IN WESTERN KENYA

Authors

  • Marie-Francoise Mwabonimana Egerton University
  • Charles Muleke Inyagwa Egerton University
  • Anthony Macharia King’ori
  • Bockline Omedo Omedo Bebe

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.21010/ajid%20v14n2.5

Keywords:

Pig, Taenia spps, meat inspection, ELISA test, Slaughter slabs, Smallholder farmers

Abstract

Background: Porcine Cysticercosis (PC) infection is globally classified as a neglected and re-emerging tropical disease. The disease may be endemic in Western Kenya yet smallholder farmers continues to practice scavenging pig production, thereby posing public health risk. This study determined the prevalence of PC infection at the farms and slaughter slabs in a cross-sectional survey in two Counties (Busia and Kakamega) of Western Kenya.

Methodology: Two hundred and eighty-seven (287) heparinized blood samples were collected at the farm from 162 householdsin 7 villages and 113 pigs from 5 slaughter slabs.  The prevalence of PC was detected through meat inspection at slaughter and the prevalence of Taenia solium antigen determined using the ApDia Ag-ELISA test at the farms and slaughter slabs.

Results: At meat inspection, the PC prevalence was 1.8% while the prevalence of Taenia Species cysts detected with Ag-ELISA test was 3.8% at the farms and 5.3 % at the slaughter slabs. The Ag-ELISA test had sensitivity of 100% (95% CI: 19.79– 100.00) and specificity of 96.4% (95% CI: 90.49– 98.84).

Conclusion: The PC prevalence levels observed among scavenging pigs in western Kenya should be a cause of public health risk concern. This observation warrants enforcing mandatory pig confinement and use of latrines at the farms and meat inspection at local slaughter slabs.  Further studies are recommended to identify different Taenia species in cysticercoids pigs in the region, which the present study could not differentiate.

Author Biographies

Charles Muleke Inyagwa, Egerton University

Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Surgery, Egerton University, P.O. Box 536 – 20115, Egerton, Kenya

Anthony Macharia King’ori

Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Egerton University, P.O. Box 536-20115, Egerton, Kenya

Doctor

Bockline Omedo Omedo Bebe

Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Egerton University, P.O. Box 536-20115, Egerton, Kenya

Professor

Downloads

Published

2020-07-31

How to Cite

Mwabonimana, M.-F., Inyagwa, C. M., King’ori, A. M., & Omedo Bebe, B. O. (2020). PREVALENCE OF PORCINE CYSTICERCOSIS AMONG SCAVENGING PIGS IN WESTERN KENYA. African Journal of Infectious Diseases (AJID), 14(2), 30–35. https://doi.org/10.21010/ajid v14n2.5

Issue

Vol. 14 No. 2 (2020)

Section

Articles

License

Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution CC BY This license lets others distribute, remix, tweak, and build upon your work, even commercially, as long as they credit you for the original creation. This is the most accommodating of licenses offered. Recommended for maximum dissemination and use of licensed materials. View License Deed | View Legal Code Authors can also self-archive their manuscripts immediately and enable public access from their institution's repository. This is the version that has been accepted for publication and which typically includes author-incorporated changes suggested during submission, peer review and in editor-author communications.