PREVALENCE OF BRUCELLOSIS IN SMALL RUMINANTS IN THREE REGIONS OF GHANA

摘要

Information on the prevalence of important reproductive zoonoses in West African countries other than Nigeria had been scanty in literature. This study estimates the prevalence of brucellosis in sheep and goats from Northern, Ashanti and Greater Accra regions of Ghana. tissues/swabs (319) and serum (370) samples were collected from sheep and goats comprising male and female West African Dwarf (WAD) andsahelian breeds between 1 to 4 years of age in the regions. These were screened for brucellosis using Modified Ziehl Neelsen (MZN) staining method and the Rose Bengal Plate Test (RBPT). A seroprevalence of 13.3% was recorded while 17.0% were positive with modified ZN staining. Goats (10%) and female animals (7.0%) had slightly higher seroprevalence. Adult animals of above two years had prevalence of 92.0% while WAD breed had the highest prevalence of 63.0% with 2.7% in female WAD. More seropositive animals were found from Ashanti region than other regions. Due to the zoonotic and economic implications of the disease, there is the need to embark on the strict control strategies including vaccination of small ruminants against brucellosis.