Constraints to estimating the prevalence of trypanosome infections in East African zebu cattle

Parasites & Vectors

Table 2 Prevalence of trypanosome species in zebu cattle

Species	Single PCR per Sample Average Prevalence (%)	Cumulative Prevalence (%)
T. theileri	5.26	85.7 (69.7 - 95.2)
T. brucei	0.91	34.3 (19.1 - 52.2)
T. congolense	1.58	42.9 (26.3 - 60.6)
T vivax	1.05	22.9 (10.4 - 40.1)
Any trypanosomes	9.7	85.71 (69.7 - 95.2)
Mixed Infections (All Samples)	0	60 (42.1 - 76.1)

The table shows (in the first column) the prevalence of the different species of trypanosomes and the prevalence of mixed infections detected in thirty-five blood samples collected from zebu cattle obtained from a single punch selected at random from the FTA card per animal. This would have been the prevalence assumed on average in an epidemiological study. In the second column the cumulative prevalence of the different species of trypanosomes and the prevalence of mixed infections is shown based on between 92 and 114 punches. 95% confidence intervals are shown in brackets. The mean diagnosed prevalence of any trypanosome species for all repeat screenings was 9.7%.

ISSN: 1756-3305