Environmental predictors of bovine Eimeria infection in western Kenya

Eimeriosis is caused by a protozoan infection affecting most domestic animal species. Outbreaks in cattle are associated with various environmental factors in temperate climates but limited work has been done in tropical settings. The objective of this work was to determine the prevalence and environmental factors associated with bovine Eimeria spp. infection in a mixed farming area of western Kenya. A total of 983 cattle were sampled from 226 cattle-keeping households. Faecal samples were collected directly from the rectum via digital extraction and analysed for the presence of Eimeria spp. infection using the MacMaster technique. Individual and household level predictors of infection were explored using mixed effects logistic regression. The prevalence of individual animal Eimeria infection was 32.8% (95% CI 29.9--35.9). A positive linear relationship was found between risk of Eimeria infection and increasing temperature (ORþinspace=þinspace1.4, 95% CI 1.06--1.86) and distance to areas at risk of flooding (ORþinspace=þinspace1.49, 95% CI 1.17--1.91). There was weak evidence of non-linear relationship between Eimeria infection and the proportion of the area around a household that was classified as swamp (ORþinspace=þinspace1.12, 95% CI 0.87--1.44; OR (quadratic term)þinspace=þinspace0.85, 95% CI 0.73--1.00), and the sand content of the soil (ORþinspace=þinspace1.18, 95% CI 0.91--1.53; OR (quadratic term)þinspace=þinspace1.1, 95% CI 0.99--1.23). The risk of animal Eimeria spp. infection is influenced by a number of climatic and soil-associated conditions

A comparison of results of empirical studies of supplementary search techniques and recommendations in review methodology handbooks: a methodological review

Background The purpose and contribution of supplementary search methods in systematic reviews is increasingly acknowledged. Numerous studies have demonstrated their potential in identifying studies or study data that would have been missed by bibliographic database searching alone. What is less certain is how supplementary search methods actually work, how they are applied, and the consequent advantages, disadvantages and resource implications of each search method. The aim of this study is to compare current practice in using supplementary search methods with methodological guidance. Methods Four methodological handbooks in informing systematic review practice in the UK were read and audited to establish current methodological guidance. Studies evaluating the use of supplementary search methods were identified by searching five bibliographic databases. Studies were included if they (1) reported practical application of a supplementary search method (descriptive) or (2) examined the utility of a supplementary search method (analytical) or (3) identified/explored factors that impact on the utility of a supplementary method, when applied in practice. Results Thirty-five studies were included in this review in addition to the four methodological handbooks. Studies were published between 1989 and 2016, and dates of publication of the handbooks ranged from 1994 to 2014. Five supplementary search methods were reviewed: contacting study authors, citation chasing, handsearching, searching trial registers and web searching. Conclusions There is reasonable consistency between recommended best practice (handbooks) and current practice (methodological studies) as it relates to the application of supplementary search methods. The methodological studies provide useful information on the effectiveness of the supplementary search methods, often seeking to evaluate aspects of the method to improve effectiveness or efficiency. In this way, the studies advance the understanding of the supplementary search methods. Further research is required, however, so that a rational choice can be made about which supplementary search strategies should be used, and when

Working conditions and public health risks in slaughterhouses in western Kenya

shw - slaughterhouse worker database sh - slaughterhouse database Original data files relating to the open access publication in BMC Public Health entitled "Working conditions and public health risks in slaughterhouses in western Kenya

The topology of between-herd cattle contacts in a mixed farming production system in western Kenya

In many livestock production systems in sub-Saharan Africa, cattle are owned by individual keepers but regularly mix with animals from other herds while grazing communal land, at watering points or through the use of shared bulls for breeding and ploughing. Such contacts may have important implications for disease transmission and control but are not well documented. We describe between farm contacts in Kimilili sub-county of Bungoma County, a mixed farming area of predominately smallholder farmers. Between-farm contacts occurring during grazing or at shared water points over the past four weeks were captured in seven randomly selected villages using a photo-elicitation tool. The use of shared bulls for breeding and ploughing, as well as cattle introductions from farms within the same village in the past 12 months, were also captured. Contact networks were constructed for each contact type in each village. In total 329 farms were included in the study. Networks resembled undirected scale-free graphs with a network density ranging between 9.6 and 14.0.. Between 45.6 and 100% of the farms in each study village had been in contact over the past four weeks through grazing and watering contacts. Between 88.9 and 100% were considered to have been in contact over the past 12 months. The topology of the networks was heterogeneous, with some farms exhibiting a high degree of contact. The degree of farm contact and distances between farms were negatively correlated (Pearson correlation coefficient range -0.2 to -0.4). Effective disease control and surveillance must take into consideration the frequency and range of contacts that occur between farms within a single village. Cattle keepers are highly interconnected and pathogens that are transmitted through direct or indirect animal contact would be expected to spread rapidly in the study system. However, the observed heterogeneity in between farm contact may present opportunities for interventions to be targeted to particular herds to limit infectious disease spread

A general contextual analysis of endemic infectious disease risk in Kenya

A general contextual analysis of endemic infectious disease risk in Kenya de Glanville W.A.1,2 #, Thomas L.F.2, Cook E.A.J.1,2, Bronsvoort B.M.3, Wardrop N.4‡, Wamae N.C.5, Kariuki S.6, Fèvre E.M.2,7* 1Centre for Immunity, Infection and Evolution, Institute for Immunology and Infection Research, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3JT, UK 2 International Livestock Research Institute, Old Naivasha Road, PO BOX 30709, 00100-Nairobi, Kenya 3 The Epidemiology, Economics and Risk Assessment Group, The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Roslin, Midlothian, EH25 9RG, UK 4 Geography and Environment, University of Southampton, Highfield Campus, University Road, Southampton, SO17 1BJ, UK 5 School of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, United States International Research University, PO Box 14634-00800, Nairobi, Kenya 6 Centre for Microbiology Research, Kenya Medical Research Institute, PO Box 19464-00200, Nairobi, Kenya 7 Institute of Infection and Global Health, University of Liverpool, Leahurst Campus, Neston, CH64 7TE, UK *Corresponding author # Current address: Boyd Orr Centre for Population and Ecosystem Health, Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom, G12 8QQ; ‡ Current address: Department for International Development, Abercrombie House, Eaglesham Road, East Kilbride, United Kingdom, G75 8EA Abstract Quantification of the effect of context in shaping disparities in disease risk provides a simple yet underutilised method for identifying health inequalities. We derived estimates of general contextual effect on the risk of individual infection from multi-level regression models for a range of endemic pathogens in a rural population in western Kenya. Measures of within-group correlation and between-group heterogeneity were calculated for household, sublocation and constituency clusters. The importance of place-based contextual effects was further assessed using the spatial scan statistic. Individuals living in the same household showed correlation in risk of infection for all pathogens under study, and this was highest for the environmentally transmitted parasites. Heterogeneities in risk between sublocations was largest for Schistosoma mansoni and Taenia solium cysticercosis and between constituencies for S. mansoni, Trichuris trichiura, Ascaris lumbricoides and HIV. Large, overlapping spatial clusters were observed for these four pathogens, as well as for taeniasis due to T. solium and/or T. saginata. Substantial heterogeneity in individual infectious disease risk exists in this rural farming community. Interventions targeted at those groups and areas at greatest risk would be expected to reduce both the overall infectious disease prevalence and important health inequalities in this population

Household socioeconomic position and infectious disease risk in rural Kenya

Household socioeconomic position and infectious disease risk in rural Kenya de Glanville W.A. PhD1,2,#, Thomas L.F. PhD 1,2, Cook E.A.J. PhD 1,2, Bronsvoort B.M. PhD 3,4, Wamae N.C. PhD 6, Kariuki S. PhD 7, Fèvre E.M. PhD 2,8* 1Centre for Immunity, Infection and Evolution, Institute for Immunology and Infection Research, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Ashworth Laboratories, West Mains Road, Edinburgh, EH9 3JT, UK 2 International Livestock Research Institute, Old Naivasha Road, PO BOX 30709, 00100-Nairobi, Kenya 3 The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Roslin, Midlothian, EH25 9RG, UK 4 Roslin Institute, The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Roslin, Midlothian, EH25 9RG, UK 6 School of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, United States International Research University, PO Box 14634-00800, Nairobi, Kenya 7 Centre for Microbiology Research, Kenya Medical Research Institute, PO Box 19464-00200, Nairobi, Kenya 8 Institute of Infection and Global Health, University of Liverpool, Leahurst Campus, Neston, CH64 7TE, UK *Corresponding author # Current address: Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom, G12 8QQ. Background Household socioeconomic position (SEP) has been repeatedly shown to predict individual infectious disease risk, yet few studies have quantified this association for the full range of pathogens that are typically endemic in low income settings. This cross-sectional study assesses the impact of SEP on a range of infectious agents with diverse transmission routes within a single community in western Kenya. Methods Information on productive and material household assets, household resources, and access to services was collected and combined to derive a single index of SEP. The relationship between household SEP and individual infection with Plasmodium falciparum, hookworm (Ancylostoma duodenale and/or Necator americanus), Entamoeba histolytica/dispar, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and HIV was assessed using multivariable logistic regression. The relationship between co-infections with hookworm, P. falciparum and E. histolytica/dispar and SEP was assessed using multinomial logistic regression. Findings Individuals in households with the lowest SEP were at greatest risk of infection with P. falciparum, hookworm and E. histolytica/dispar, as well as co-infection with each pathogen. Infection with M. tuberculosis, by contrast, was most likely in individuals living in households with the highest SEP. There was no evidence of a relationship between individual HIV infection and household SEP. Interpretation A household socioeconomic gradient exists in this predominantly poor, rural farming community. This gradient significantly impacts upon individual infectious disease risk, but the relationship between household SEP and infection is not consistent for all pathogens. Funding Wellcome Trust, BBSRC, MRC and CGIAR Research Program on Agriculture for Nutrition and Healt

The Influence of Socio-economic, Behavioural and Environmental Factors on Taenia spp. Transmission in Western Kenya: Evidence from a Cross-sectional Survey in Humans and Pigs (People, Animals and their Zoonoses - PAZ - project)

This project deals with zoonotic infections amongst livestock and the farmers who keep them. Zoonotic diseases are infections transmitted between animals and humans; they are a major group of pathogens (approximately 60% of all human-infective organisms), with a diversity of animal hosts including wildlife, pets and domestic animals. Domestic livestock (especially cattle and pigs) are an important source of zoonotic infections to humans, due in part to the close interactions between these agricultural animals and the people who keep them. While keeping domestic stock is an important source of rural livelihoods in many countries, these animals may also expose the families who keep them to disease risks. Understanding the interactions between people and their domestic animals, and the transmission of zoonoses between them, is of vital importance in creating the evidence-based disease control policies that are required to protect both human and animal health. The dataset relates to a paper published in an open access journal, relating to the influence of socio-economic, behavioural and environmental factors on Taenia spp. transmission in western Kenya. Taenia, of cysticercosis, is a zoonotic disease. These data were collected in a cross-sectional epidemiological study carried out between 2010 and 2013. Funding was from the Wellcome Trust and the Medical Research Council