1. Prevalence of Fasciola hepatica in organic cattle farms in Lithuania
Stadalienė I., Šarkūnas M., Petkevičius S.
Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Veterinary Academy, Tilžės str. 18, LT-47181, Kaunas, Lithuania
Introduction:
Fasciola hepatica, the common liver fluke is a widely distributed parasitic helminth The liver fluke is a common parasite affecting animals as well as humans throughout the world. In cattle, fasciolosis is generally considered a subclinical disease and often diagnosed at post slaughter. The aim of performed study was to estimate the prevalence of Fasciola hepatica in Lithuanian cattle herds during 2015.
Materials and Methods:
For this study a cattle was deemed positive for fasciolosis when at the meet inspection the liver was condemned and recorded as infected due to typical lesions (enlarged fibrotic bile ducts and cholangiohepatitis). The slaughtered animals were originating from organic farms in most parts of Lithuania. A questionnaire on environmental variables and parasite control programs was administered to majority of these farms.
Results and Discussion:
During the study 1076 slaughtered animals from 142 farms were examined. The prevalence of F. hepatica was 22% and 42% in examined animals and farms, respectively. The higher prevalence was recorded in the middle (Kaišiadoriai distr. − 46%) and western (Tauragė distr. − 55%) regions of Lithuania. These regions are characterized with the higher annual rainfall and larger amount of lowlands or natural water sources, with favorable conditions for the growth and reproduction of intermediate host for F. hepatica. The location and production-type not significantly influence to infection of F. hepatica in farms. The results from questionnaire survey suggests that on most farms the cattle had an access to natural water sources or lowlands and no regular control measures against liver flukes were applied. B
Negative
for Fasciola
Positive
for Fasciola
A - Distribution of examined farms of Lithuania at slaughterhouse; B – Annual average of rainfall; C – The map of relief. C A
Conclusions:
The study showed high prevalence of F. hepatica in cattle farms.
The large number of animals in farm was significantly associated with Fasciola infection.
.Presence of streams, pounds, wetlands on farms were significantly associated with the presence fasciolosis in cattle farms.