Abstract:
The study carried out in the wilaya of Constantine (north-east Algeria) made it possible to estimate the importance of liver and lung lesions in cattle and sheep in slaughterhouses. The retrospective study carried out from registers of the slaughterhouses of Constantine, Algeria, on 145,919 cattle and 345,282 sheep apparently healthy, slaughtered between 2009 and 2018 highlighted the prevalence of the two dominant parasitic infections
which cause gross lesions in liver and lungs, i.e. cystic echinococcosis (CE) and Fasciola hepatica infection. The prevalence of F. hepatica infection was significantly higher in cattle (2.7%) than in sheep (0.2%). There was a non-significant decrease from 4.5 to 2.0% (p >0.05) in the prevalence of F. hepatica in cattle during the 10-year period. The prevalence of CE in the livers and lungs was significantly higher in cattle (3.3% and 9.7%, respectively) than in sheep (0.6% and 1.1%, respectively). The prevalence of CE was significantly higher in lungs than in livers. A cross-sectional survey was conducted in the slaughterhouse of Constantine (NorthEastern Algeria) between February 2018 and February 2019. Livers and lungs of 2,574 sheep and 1,036 cattle were examined for the presence of lesions. The overall prevalence of lung lesions was 33% and 32% in sheep and cattle, respectively. The most frequent lesion in sheep lungs were red hepatization (19%) followed by pleurisy (12%). In cattle, the most frequent
lung lesion was cystic echinococcosis (CE) (24%), followed by pleurisy (7%) and
emphysema (5%). Lungworm infestation (9%), atelectasis (0.2%) and suppurative
bronchopneumonia (0.2%) were observed only in sheep lungs. On the other hand, CE (24%) and tuberculosis (1%) were observed only in cattle. The prevalence of lung abscesses was 1 and 5% in cattle and sheep respectively. The prevalence of lung lesions was higher in cattle older than 8 years of age (66%) in comparison with younger cattle (14%). The overall prevalence of liver lesions was significantly higher in cattle (15%) than in sheep (11%). The highest prevalence of lesions in cattle livers was due to CE (8%), followed by ABSCESS (6%), Fasciola hepatica infection (2%) and perihepatitis (1%). Cysticercus tenuicollis was
observed only in 6% of the examined sheep, followed by abscess (5%). The highest prevalence of C. tenuicollis occurred in winter (9%) followed by autumn (6%). Lung and liver lesions represent a serious problem to livestock industry in Algeria, further studies are needed to implement appropriate control programs.
