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Bovine Lungworm: Prevalence and Risk Factor in Asella Town, Oromia Region in Ethiopia

Received: 10 September 2025     Accepted: 5 October 2025     Published: 7 January 2026
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Abstract

Bovine lungworm, also known as Dictyocaulus viviparous, is a parasitic worm that infects cattle, particularly calves. It's a lungworm from the Strongylidae family. Between May and June 2024, a cross-sectional study was undertaken in and around Asella town, Ethiopia, to establish the current prevalence of bovine lungworm and its associated risk factors. A total of 384 cattle fecal samples were collected at random and brought to the Arsi University Veterinary Laboratory for larval identification. Of the 384 fecal samples analyzed microscopically, 20 were positive for lungworm infection, indicating an overall prevalence of 5.21%. The results were presented using descriptive statistics, and the chi-square test was used to investigate the relationship between categorical variables and the presence of bovine lungworm. The study found a substantial correlation (P<0.05) between age, breed, and body condition score. However, the sex connection was not statistically significant (P>0.05). The incidence was 6.6% in animals aged 1 to 5 years and 3.45% in those older than 5 years. The highest prevalence was seen in animals with poor body condition (8.6%), followed by those with medium (5.3%) and good (2.2%) body states. Crossbreeds have a higher prevalence (6.98%) than native breeds. Furthermore, infection rates varied by body condition score, with rates of 8.6%, 5.3%, and 2.2% for poor, medium, and good conditions, respectively. The findings of this study indicate that bovine lungworm prevalence is a substantial issue in the area. Furthermore, our data suggest the need for additional research into the occurrence and prevalence of bovine lungworm in and around Arsi town, which can aid in identifying cost-effective ways to reduce cow mortality.

Published in Advances in Bioscience and Bioengineering (Volume 14, Issue 1)
DOI 10.11648/j.abb.20261401.11
Page(s) 1-6
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2026. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Lungworm, Bearman Technique, Prevalence, Dictocolous Viviparous, Larvae

References
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Cite This Article
  • APA Style

    Meskele, F. Y., Gizaw, F. (2026). Bovine Lungworm: Prevalence and Risk Factor in Asella Town, Oromia Region in Ethiopia. Advances in Bioscience and Bioengineering, 14(1), 1-6. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.abb.20261401.11

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    ACS Style

    Meskele, F. Y.; Gizaw, F. Bovine Lungworm: Prevalence and Risk Factor in Asella Town, Oromia Region in Ethiopia. Adv. BioSci. Bioeng. 2026, 14(1), 1-6. doi: 10.11648/j.abb.20261401.11

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    AMA Style

    Meskele FY, Gizaw F. Bovine Lungworm: Prevalence and Risk Factor in Asella Town, Oromia Region in Ethiopia. Adv BioSci Bioeng. 2026;14(1):1-6. doi: 10.11648/j.abb.20261401.11

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  • @article{10.11648/j.abb.20261401.11,
      author = {Fetegn Yohannis Meskele and Fikru Gizaw},
      title = {Bovine Lungworm: Prevalence and Risk Factor in Asella Town, Oromia Region in Ethiopia},
      journal = {Advances in Bioscience and Bioengineering},
      volume = {14},
      number = {1},
      pages = {1-6},
      doi = {10.11648/j.abb.20261401.11},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.abb.20261401.11},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.abb.20261401.11},
      abstract = {Bovine lungworm, also known as Dictyocaulus viviparous, is a parasitic worm that infects cattle, particularly calves. It's a lungworm from the Strongylidae family. Between May and June 2024, a cross-sectional study was undertaken in and around Asella town, Ethiopia, to establish the current prevalence of bovine lungworm and its associated risk factors. A total of 384 cattle fecal samples were collected at random and brought to the Arsi University Veterinary Laboratory for larval identification. Of the 384 fecal samples analyzed microscopically, 20 were positive for lungworm infection, indicating an overall prevalence of 5.21%. The results were presented using descriptive statistics, and the chi-square test was used to investigate the relationship between categorical variables and the presence of bovine lungworm. The study found a substantial correlation (P0.05). The incidence was 6.6% in animals aged 1 to 5 years and 3.45% in those older than 5 years. The highest prevalence was seen in animals with poor body condition (8.6%), followed by those with medium (5.3%) and good (2.2%) body states. Crossbreeds have a higher prevalence (6.98%) than native breeds. Furthermore, infection rates varied by body condition score, with rates of 8.6%, 5.3%, and 2.2% for poor, medium, and good conditions, respectively. The findings of this study indicate that bovine lungworm prevalence is a substantial issue in the area. Furthermore, our data suggest the need for additional research into the occurrence and prevalence of bovine lungworm in and around Arsi town, which can aid in identifying cost-effective ways to reduce cow mortality.},
     year = {2026}
    }
    

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    AU  - Fetegn Yohannis Meskele
    AU  - Fikru Gizaw
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    AB  - Bovine lungworm, also known as Dictyocaulus viviparous, is a parasitic worm that infects cattle, particularly calves. It's a lungworm from the Strongylidae family. Between May and June 2024, a cross-sectional study was undertaken in and around Asella town, Ethiopia, to establish the current prevalence of bovine lungworm and its associated risk factors. A total of 384 cattle fecal samples were collected at random and brought to the Arsi University Veterinary Laboratory for larval identification. Of the 384 fecal samples analyzed microscopically, 20 were positive for lungworm infection, indicating an overall prevalence of 5.21%. The results were presented using descriptive statistics, and the chi-square test was used to investigate the relationship between categorical variables and the presence of bovine lungworm. The study found a substantial correlation (P0.05). The incidence was 6.6% in animals aged 1 to 5 years and 3.45% in those older than 5 years. The highest prevalence was seen in animals with poor body condition (8.6%), followed by those with medium (5.3%) and good (2.2%) body states. Crossbreeds have a higher prevalence (6.98%) than native breeds. Furthermore, infection rates varied by body condition score, with rates of 8.6%, 5.3%, and 2.2% for poor, medium, and good conditions, respectively. The findings of this study indicate that bovine lungworm prevalence is a substantial issue in the area. Furthermore, our data suggest the need for additional research into the occurrence and prevalence of bovine lungworm in and around Arsi town, which can aid in identifying cost-effective ways to reduce cow mortality.
    VL  - 14
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Author Information
  • School of Veterinary Medicine, Arsi University, Asella, Ethiopia

  • School of Veterinary Medicine, Arsi University, Asella, Ethiopia

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