Seroepidemiological study of bovine viral diarrhea (BVD) in three agroecological zones in Ethiopia.

Bovine viral diarrhea (BVD) is one of the most economically important diseases of cattle that has worldwide distribution and tend to be endemic in most populations, although national and regional variations occur (Kampa et al. 2008). The causative agent, BVD virus (BVDV) is a member of the Pestivirus genus within the family Flaviviridae (OIE 2008). The BVD is capable of producing a broad range of clinical signs, although infection manifests itself without any obvious symptoms (subclinical). The spread of BVDV infection through a herd is mainly by persistently infected (PI) animals; such animals harbor the virus for life and shed it in high concentration without showing any immune response. The elimination of PI animals is therefore paramount in efforts to limit the spread of the virus, but a control program also requires other components such as determination of the herd’s initial BVDV status and preventing the introduction of BVDV in non-infected herds (Laureyns et al. 2009). In Africa, few studies conducted on seroprevalence of the disease have indicated that the prevalences were varied from 70–83% (Muvavarirawa et al. 1995). Although prevalences were reported in European and some African countries, there is no research or published information available as to these authors knowledge on the investigation of BVDV infection in Ethiopia. Thus, the objectives of this study were to detect the presence of BVDV infection and to determine the prevalence and associated factors in three agroecological zones in Ethiopia.