Prevalence of <i>Dictyocaulus viviparous</i> in Cattles of Jimma Town, Ethiopia

Introduction: Lungworm infection in cattle is caused by the nematode parasite called Dictyocaulus viviparous, which is the only lungworm, found in cattle and is characterized by bronchitis and pneumonia. It can significantly reduce production, cause death, and increase treatment costs. Therefore, this study was designed to determine the prevalence of bovine lungworm infection, identifying risk factors associated with the disease in Jimma Town, Ethiopia. A cross-sectional study was conducted in Jimma town from December 2023 to April 2024. Methods: A total of 384 cattle fecal samples were collected randomly and Bearmann technique was employed for detection of lung worm larvae. Age, sex, breed, body condition and management systems were considered as risk factors for the occurrence of the disease in this study. SPSS version 20 was used to summarize the data and chi-square statistics were used to test the association between variables as well as the statistical significance. Results: The overall prevalence of lungworm in cattle was 10.15% in the study area. Based on analysis the associated risk factors, age (P=0.018, OR=2.479, 95% CI=1.172-5.244), body condition score (P=0.001, OR=3.168, 95% CI=1.903-5.281), and breed (P=0.001, OR=4.519, 95% CI=2.261-9.032), were statistically significant with lung worm. During the study period, the highest prevalence of lungworm was recorded in female 12.28% than in 8.29% male cattle; even though there is difference in prevalence of lungworm between the sexes, it was statistically insignificant (P=0.121, 95% CI=0.870-3.293). In current study, the highest prevalence was observed in extensive management systems (12.31%) as compared with semi-intensive (10.37%) and intensive (7.21%) management systems. However, the difference was statistically insignificant (P=0.635, 95% CI=0.730-1.675). Conclusion: The study concluded that the prevalence of bovine lungworm in the study area was more associated with young stock in extensive and semi-intensive management systems, which needs great attention when designing the control programs of the parasite.