Schistosome Infections and Other Gastrointestinal Parasites in Cattle of the Magba Sub-division in the West Region of Cameroon

Although gastrointestinal parasites affect livestock production and economic development, investigations targeting these infectious diseases have been overlooked in most African countries. This study was designed to determine and map schistosomes and other gastrointestinal parasites in cattle of Magba Sub-division in the West region of Cameroon and to comparatively assess the kato-katz and sedimentation technique for diagnosing livestock schistosomiasis. During a cross-sectional study, fecal material was collected in apparently 264 healthy cattle of one to above 9 years from 4 sub-districts of the Magba sub-division. Kato-katz was used to search schistosomes and other gastrointestinal eggs while the sedimentation technique was only used to search schistosome eggs. Eight gastrointestinal parasites including schistosomes (79.9 %), Eimeria spp. (16.7 %), Fasciola spp. (12.5 %), Dicrocoelium spp. (9.1 %), Strongyloides spp. (7.2 %), Toxocara spp. (2.7 %), Trichuris spp. (2.3 %) and Monieza spp. (1.1 %) were detected in cattle fecal material. The overall prevalence of schistosome infections was 43.9 % with the Kato-katz and 79.9 % with the sedimentation technique. The Kappa coefficient index between the two techniques for detecting schistosome eggs was 0.32 (95 % CI: 0.24-0.40). Among the infected animals, 53.7 % had one gastrointestinal parasite while 21.0 %, 9.1 % and 1.9 % had respectively 2, 3 and 4 different gastrointestinal parasites. The prevalence of schistosomes and that of Fasciola spp. and Eimeria spp. vary significantly between sub-districts. This study revealed a high prevalence of schistosomes and several other gastrointestinal parasites in cattle. It showed a wide distribution of these parasitic infections in all sub-districts; indicating the need to control these infections for improving cattle health and breeders' economy.