Prevalence and risk factors associated with occurrence of camel brucellosis in Mudug Pastoral Region, Somalia

Abstract

Brucellosis a zoonotic disease is primarily a disease of cattle and goats/sheep. Camels however are also infected by B. abortus and B. melitensis, which are from ruminants. A cross-sectional study was conducted to determine the prevalence and risk factors associated with brucellosis antibodies in camels in the selected districts of Galkacyo, Galdogob and Jariban in Somalia. Blood samples were collected from camels and screened for presence of antibodies using Rose Bengal Test. Seropositive samples were confirmed using I. ELISA. Additional information was collected from camel owners to identify risk factors like demographic characteristics such as sex, age, education of farmers as well as information about risks factors for transmission and maintenance of brucellosis in camels. Of the 420 camels sampled majority were females 86.4% (n=363) and adults 96.9% (407). Of these tested for brucellosis, 3.1% (n=13) were positive by RBPT. Seroprevalence was not significantly affected by sex, age, management system and source of camels (P > 0.05). When the seropositive samples were confirmed with I-ELISA, only 10/13 samples were positive, implying that there were 3/13 false positive results. Education level of camel owner, knowledge about brucellosis, camel abortion history or whether camels were herded separately or communally in village herds all had no significant association with occurrence of brucellosis. However, animals with abortion history showed higher prevalence (2.6%) compared to the ones without history of abortion (0.5%). It was concluded that brucellosis is still prevalent in camels in Somalia and therefore, there is need for increased surveillance in order to effectively control of the disease.