Seroprevalence of Bovine Viral Diarrhea Virus (BVDV) and Its Associated Risk Factors in Dairy Cattle in and Around Assela Town, South East Ethiopia

Abstract Background: Bovine viral diarrhea (BVD) is one of the most economically important diseases of cattle population worldwide and caused by Bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV). A cross-sectional study was conducted from October, 2019 to April, 2020 to investigate the sero-prevalence and associated risk factors for Bovine Viral Diarrhea Virus (BVDV) infection. in and around Asella town, Ethiopia. Semi structured questionnaire survey was designed to assess the different variables related to herd managements through personal interview of the farmers. Serum samples were collected from a total of 45 non-vaccinated cattle herds (225 individual cattle) during the study period. Samples were examined for detection of bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) antibodies using indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (iELISA) kit (ID Screen® BVD p80 Antibody) following the manufacturers protocol. Chi-square analysis and multivariable logistic regression model were used to identify risk factors for BVDV seropositivity. Results: In the present study, 8.4% (95% CI: 5.2-12.9) and 22.2% (95% CI: 11.2-37.1) seroprevalence of BVDV antibody was observed at individual and herds level, respectively. Among the animal and management risk factors observed in multiple logistic regression analysis, higher seroprevalence of was observed in cows with history of abortion 53.8% (95% CI: 25.1-80.8%), cattle reared in semi intensive farming system 28.3% (95% CI: 16.0-43.5) (P<0.05). In this study, abortion (adjusted OR: 30.5, P<0.05), repeated breeder (adjusted OR: 6.95, P<0.05) and intensive farming systems (adjusted OR: 0.13, P<0.05) were identified as potential variables for the seroprevalence of BVDV. Conclusion: The study revealed immense exposure of cattle in and around Asella town to BVDV infection that varied with reproductive problem and farming system of the animals. Further studies will be required to elucidate the molecular epidemiology of BVDV infection in cattle and other livestock species in the study area.