Exposure to bovine livestock and latent tuberculosis infection in children: Investigating the zoonotic tuberculosis potential in a large urban and peri-urban area of Cameroon.

ABSTRACT: Bovine tuberculosis (bTB), a neglected zoonotic disease, is endemic in cattle in many Sub-saharan African countries, yet its contribution to tuberculosis (TB) burden is understudied. Rapid urbanisation and increase in demand for animal proteins, including dairy products, increases the risk of spill over. This study compared the latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) risk in children, a proxy-measure for recent TB infection, in children living in high cattle density areas to children from the general population in Cameroon. Cross-sectional study in the Centre Region of Cameroon in 2021, recruiting 160 children aged 2-15 years, stratified by exposure to livestock, people treated for pulmonary TB (PTB) and the general community. Veinous blood was tested for LTBI using QuantiFERON-TB Gold-Plus.

SUBMITTER: Tsasse MAF 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11346947 | biostudies-literature | 2024

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature