PREVALENCE AND DETERMINANTS OF CALF HELMINTHIASIS PREVALENCE AND DETERMINANTS OF CALF HELMINTHIASIS AT SYLHET DISTRICT OF BANGLADESH AT SYLHET DISTRICT OF BANGLADESH

Abstract

Gastrointestinal parasites infections are of extreme importance in many agro-ecological zones and considered as one of the major constraints to livestock production throughout the tropics and subtropics including Bangladesh. A cross-sectional followed by case-control studies was carried out from August 2014 through April 2015 to determine the prevalence and determinants of gastrointestinal nematodes and cestodes infection in calves from 12 upazillas of Sylhet district. A total 554 samples from 50 herds were collected during the time period using simple random sampling. Collected samples were examined qualitative and quantitatively using simple floatation and McMaster technique to identify the egg of different parasites and 330 samples were found to be positive. The overall prevalences were 53.97% and 59.57% in floatation and McMaster technique, respectively. There were no differences in prevalences between crossbred and local indigenous calves with 57.24% and 62.26% prevalences, respectively. The young calves (≤1 year) were shown higher prevalence with 63.92% than the older calves (>1year) with 45.38%. Female calves were more susceptible than the male calves. Based on the morphological characteristics of helminths eggs a total of nine different species (H. contortus, T. vitulurum,S. pepillosus, T. axie, B. phlebotomum, O. radiatum, T. trichuris, M. expansa and M. benadini) of nematodal and cystodal helminths species were identified. Among the identified species H. contortus (35.38%), T. vitulurum (16.97%) and S. pepillosus (12.455%) were more prevalent than the other species. Out of these 330 infected samples the prevalences of mixed and species specific infections were 29.60% and 29.96%, respectively. Gastrointestinal calf helminthiasis was found in all upazilas but, the highest prevalence (74%) was in Balagonj upazilla and the lowest (40%) in Companigonj. Determinants of calf helminhiasis for overall, mixed, single and species specific infection were identified from a series of case-control study designs. In multiple logistic regression models, overall and mixed infection models were almost identical with a little exception. In both final models age, gender and regular dewarming practice were turned out to have significant influence on calf helminthiasis. Young (<1year) and female calves had significantly higher chance of being infected (p<0.01, OR=2.021 and p<0.01, OR=1.35) then the older and male calves. Non-dewormed calves (p<0.01, OR=1.31) had a significantly higher chance of being infected than the regularly dewormed calves. Local indigenous calves were more susceptible to mixed helminth infection then crossbred calves in Sylhet region. Age and gender and gender alone were the significant variables in the final models for single infection and H. contortus infection, respectively. These findings of this study can be used as baseline to develop strategic control of gastrointestinal nematodes and cestodes in calves in sylhet.