Prevalence of Cryptosporidium species copro-antigens in piglets in Kafanchan, Kaduna State, Nigeria

Cryptosporidiosis is a zoonotic disease caused by the protozoan parasite Cryptosporidium spp. A cross-sectional study was conducted to determine the prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. copro-antigens in piglets from Kafanchan, Kaduna Sate, Nigeria. A total of 185 faecal samples from piglets were collected and tested using a commercial kit (Copro-Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent AssayTM). An overall prevalence of 16.8% (31/185) was recorded from the study. The prevalence was relatively higher in piglets of age 5 to 6 weeks (17.8%), than age 0 to 4 weeks (15.4%), in male (17.7%) than in female (15.9%), in Land white breed (17.5%) than in Land race breed (12.0%), in piglets managed under semi-intensive (18.7%), than those managed under intensive system (10.9%). There were no statistical significant associations (p>0.05) among the various parameters investigated, however, piglets with diarrhea had higher (34.5%) rate of infection than those without (13.5%) diarrhea and the association was statistically significant (OR = 3.383; 95% CI on OR: 1.385 < OR <8.265, p = 0.007). Among the investigated factors, presence of diarrhea was shown to be a significant factor in the spread of Cryptosporidium infection in piglets. It may be concluded that such a symptom needs to be routinely investigated under the production systems practiced in the study area in view of the economic and public health importance.