title: Prevalence and distribution of gastro-intestinal helminths and haemoparasites in young scavenging chickens in upper eastern region of Ghana, West Africa.
abstract: We conducted a cross-sectional study to determine the prevalence and species of gastro-intestinal helminths and haemoparasites in 100 chickens kept under extensive management systems in Ghana, West Africa. All the examined chickens (100%) were infected with gastro-intestinal helminths; a total of 18 species were detected. The species and their prevalences were: Acuaria hamulosa (25%), Allodapa suctoria (20%), Ascaridia galli (24%), Capillaria spp. (60%), Choanotaenia infundibulum (13%), Gongylonema ingluvicola (62%), Heterakis gallinarum (31%), H. isolonche (16%), Hymenolepis spp. (66%), Raillietina cesticillus (12%), R. echinobothrida (81%), R. tetragona (59%), Strongyloides avium (2%), Subulura strongylina (10%), Tetrameres fissispina (58%), Trichostronygylus tenuis (2%), and finally one unidentified acanthocephalan (1%) and one unidentified trematode (1%). Thirty-five per cent of the chickens were infected with the haemoparasites Aegyptinella pullorum and Plasmodium juxtanucleare (prevalences 9% and 27%, respectively). Association between chicken sex and prevalences was not significant. An over-dispersed distribution was seen for most of the helminth species.
authors.affiliation: Department of Population Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. jpo@ssi.dk
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Poulsen
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Permin
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Hindsbo
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Yelifari
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Nansen
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bloch
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002645:Chickens; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D005767:Gastrointestinal Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*; D005869:Ghana / Q000453:epidemiology; D006374:Helminthiasis, Animal / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000469:parasitology*; D008297:Male; D011201:Poultry Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000469:parasitology*; D015995:Prevalence