Clinico-pathological studies on naturally-occurring bovine fascioliasis in the Sudan

Abstract

AbstractAn investigation was made of the pathological, haematological and biochemical aspects of naturallyoccurring bovine fascioliasis in the Sudan. 228 animals infected with Fasdola gigantica and 25 non-infected controls were used in the study.The infected cattle revealed emaciation, typical liver pathology, and, occasionally, lesions in the lung and the pancreas. Analysis of their sera also showed reduced albumin values, increased globulin concentrations and decreased albumin/globulin ratio, in addition to increased arginase activity. The serum iron concentration, on the other hand, was decreased, while the total iron binding capacity increased and the resultant iron saturation values reduced. Haematological findings in the infected animals included reduced erythrocyte counts, decreased haematocrjt values, increased mean corpuscular volumes, eosinophilia and decreased neutrophil, lymphocyte and monocytc counts.