Abstract:
Leishmaniasis is one of a neglected tropical and subtropical protozoal disease endemic to 98
countries worldwide. In East Africa, life threatening human visceral leishmaniasis is caused by
Leishmania donovani and primarily affects the poor’s and isolated community due to malnutrition,
lack of preventive measures and reduced access to health care facilities. The most important risk
factors of the disease are environmental change, socio-economic problems, agricultural expansion
and new reservoir hosts. The objective of this study is to determine seroprevalence and associated
risk factors of domestic animals in visceral leishmaniasis in selected area of Karat Zuria District.
A cross sectional study design was conducted in February-May, 2023. The direct agglutination test
was used on the serum of domestic animals (cattle, dog and goat) for anti-leishmania antibodies in
visceral leishmaniasis in Karat Zuria District. A total of 35.7% (137/384) of the animals were
seropositive for anti-L. donovani IgG; goats accounted for 24.37% (49/201), cattle for 46.87%
(60/128), and dogs for 50.9% (28/55). The detection of anti- L. donovani antibody in the blood of
domestic animals indicate that they are frequently exposed to Leishmania infection and are likely
to participate in the epidemiology of Leishmania infection, either as potential blood sources or
possibly as parasite hosts. Further studies need to be carried out to investigate the role of domestic
animals in Karat Zuria District.
