Prevalence and Risk Factors of Cysticercus Bovis in North Kordofan state, Sudan

Abstract

A cross-sectional study was conducted on 200 cattle slaughtered at Elobied slaughterhouse in North Kordofan state, Sudan, during the period extended from April to June 2013 to estimate the prevalence of Cysticercus bovis infection in slaughtered cattle and to investigate potential risk factors associated with the disease. Routine meat inspection procedure was employed to detect the presence of Cysticercus bovis cysts in predilection sites, which were shoulder muscle, heart, masseter (cheek) muscle, diaphragm, tongue and liver. The study showed that the overall prevalence was 1%. A univariate analysis was performed using the chi-square as a test of significance for the association between the infection and the investigated potential risk factors. No significant association was detected between cysticercus bovis infection and each of sex (p-value = 0.45), age (p-value = 0.32), body condition (p-value = 0.69), breed (p-value = 0.95), animal source (p-value = 0.92) and grazing type (p-value = 0.86). Our study showed that the liver was the only infected organ, while no infection was found in the rest of the organs. Macroscopic examination of the 18 cysts (found in 2 affected animals) revealed that 9 cysts (50%) were viable, while 9 cysts (50%) were calcified.