Brucellosis and bovine tuberculosis at an animal-human interface in Zimbabwe

Abstract

Background:TheSouthEast Lowveld (SEL)of Zimbabwe is characterisedbyextensive farmingwhere70%ofhouseholdsowncattle, 88% sheep and 100% goats. The Gonarezhou national park, which is part of the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park, lies in the SEL. Fences of the park in Zimbabwe were partly removed making the frontier between wildlife and domestic cattle extremely porous. In 2008, the first isolation of bovine tuberculosis (bTB) in buffaloes was reported in Gonarezhou. Brucellosis was also diagnosed in SEL but only in cattle (5-16%). The importance of the interface between wildlife, domestic animals and human in this region revealed a high potential for transmission of zoonoses. This study tackles the zoonotic risk of brucellosis and bTB in SEL. Methods & Materials: A three dimensional risk analysis approach. was the adopted methodology. Results: The study demonstrated that the public and professionals are at risk from zoonoses particularly brucellosis, due to lack of knowledge (57% awareness) combined with risky food consumption habits – 41% and 67% consume raw milk and game meat respectively. Only 36.2% of the professionals received continuous education on zoonoses and just 34.4% of human health workers were aware of brucellosis which could also account for several cases of undiagnosed febrile illnesses. There is lack of collaboration between the custodians of public health, the Department of Livestock Veterinary Services and the (DVS) and the Ministry of Health and Child Care (MoHCC) in public health education. Conclusion: Even though no cattle sampleswere found positive to bovine tuberculosis, given the similarity of modes of transmission to brucellosis, the potential transmission of bTB from wildlife to cattle would constitute an important threat for human population. In addition to these results, HIV prevalence in Zimbabwe is highwith a prevalence of 14.9% amongst adult aged 15 to 49. Therefore the potential of brucellosis and bovine tuberculosis spread into human population is really to be considered. As such strengthening links andpromoting inter-disciplinaryOneHealth collaboration between the two groups of professionals, human and veterinary in the field of public healthwould result in effective zoonoses control.