Analyses of baseline surveillance data on contagious bovine pleuropneumonia in the southern Sudan

In the first survey for contagious bovine pleuropneumonia (CBPP) in the southern region of the Sudan (Bahr el Ghazal Province), 8.1% of Dinka-owned, and 9.2% of Fellata-owned, cattle, and 48 and 20% of their respective herds were serologically positive for CBPP. Dinka cattle between 3 months and 3 years of age had significantly higher test reaction rates than those younger or older. There was a positive association between reaction rates and herd size. A similar association was found between crude mortality rates and herd size, though virtually none of the variability among herds in crude mortality was accounted for by presence of CBPP infection. Overall, the study indicated a highly endemic situation for CBPP infection with rare overt disease under conditions of little prior intervention. Under such conditions, it is suggested that a “surveillance and selective actions” rather than a “mass actions” approach might be the most suitable, with vaccination limited by surveillance to those areas at highest risk of outbreaks of clinically important CBPP, namely areas of low herd immunity or those where actual outbreaks of clinical disease have already occurred. Such an approach to CBPP could serve as a “model” for establishing a system of improved disease intelligence overall in the southern Sudan.