Review on the Sheep Fasciolosis in Ethiopia

Authors:

Abdisa T*

Volume 2, Issue 2

Abstract

Fasciolosis is one of the major constraint factors for ovine production development in Ethiopia by inflecting direct and indirect loss at different parts of the country. Ovine fasciolosis is an economically important parasitic disease of sheep caused by trematodes species of the genus Fasciola, which migrate in the hepatic parenchyma and establish and develops in the bile ducts.
In Ethiopia, both species co-exist at different altitudes. The snails of the genus lymnae are mainly involved as an intermediate host in the life cycle of fasciolosis. Ovine fascioliasis in Ethiopia were losses annually estimated at 48.4 million Ethiopian birr due to mortality, productivity (weight loss and reproductive wastage), and liver condemnation at slaughter. This fasciola disease has three phases of clinical sign acute, sub-acute and chronic forms. Acute fasciolosis occurs as disease outbreak following a massive, but relatively short-term, intake of metacercariae. Death usually results from blood loss due to hemorrhage and tissue destruction caused by the migratory juvenile flukes in the live resulting in traumatic hepatitis. Diagnosis of Fasciolosis is based on clinical sign, grazing history, and seasonal occurrence, examination of feces by laboratory tests and post mortem examination. Treatment of infected animals will largely depend on the correct use of appropriate and registered anthelmintic. Triclabendazole is the most effective anthelmintic drug which can be destroys or kills all stage of fasciola. Fasciolosis may be controlled by reducing the populations of the intermediate snail host, or by appropriate anthelminthic treatment and the population of snail should be destroyed by applying Molluscicide and destroying the environment that suit for snail’s reproduction.

Keywords:

Ethiopia; Fasciolosis; Anthelminthic; Triclabendazole; Snails; Molluscicide

View PDF