Prevalence of bovine brucellosis in India: a meta-analysis
P. A. Jaismon, Akula Sushmitha, Med Ram Verma, Yash Pal Singh, Udipta Borthakur, Sanjay Kumar, Khan Sharun, Kuldeep Dhama
Abstract
Background The livestock sector has a substantial role in India. Bovine brucellosis is a highly contagious zoonotic disease that hinders production and is a vital public health concern. Even though brucellosis is one of the important diseases in India, the exact prevalence details of the disease are deficient.Objective To derive an estimate of the prevalence of brucellosis in India.Material and Methods To counter this information barrier, a systematic review and meta-analysis was carried out in this study. PRISMA and MOOSE protocols were employed for obtaining and scrutinizing the published works. A total of 133 studies were taken from online sources and various publications. Among these, 69 studies were incorporated that includes a total of 140908 bovines. The data was compiled from 1990 to 2019 around India. Meta-analysis was carried out using R software.Results Pooled estimates of the prevalence of brucellosis in cattle and buffalo were 16.6% (95% CI: 13.0, 21.1) and 14.2% (95% CI: 8.9, 21.8), respectively, and in bovines was 15.1% (95% CI: 12.0, 18.8). The meta-analysis revealed that there was significant heterogeneity between the published studies with heterogeneity across studies in bovines was 99.4%.Conclusion As the prevalence of bovine brucellosis in India is not known hence the present study will provide the knowledge on prevalence and epidemiology of bovine brucellosis in India and will be helpful for the government to make policy plans to control this disease in India.