Browsing by Author "Gathura, P.B."
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Item Assessment of the Rose-Bengal Plate Test for the Diagnosis Of Human Brucellosis in Health Facilities in Narok District, Kenya(1998) McDermott, J.J.; Maichomo, M.W.; Arimi, S.M.; Gathura, P.B.The Rose-Bengal plate test (RBPT) was performed on 488 patients with flu-like symptoms from Narok district. There was poor agreement between RBPT results from four health facilities in Narok and from the central veterinary laboratory (CVL). Agreement was poorer for the three rural dispensaries than for the District Hospital. On the other hand, for tests conducted at the CVL, there was good agreement between RBPT, serum agglutination test (SAT) and complement fixation test (CFT) results, indicating that all these tests were probably performing well. Better training and quality control and the use of white rather than a clear background surface for judging agglutination results are recommended to improve the performance of test results in Narok District health facilities.Item The potential role played by various livestock intermediate hosts in the transmission of hydatidosis in Kenya(2004) Ndirangu, P.N.; Njeruh, F.M.; Gathura, P.B.; Kyule, M.N.A study was conducted to determine the potential role played by cattle, sheep, goats and pigs in the transmission of hydatidosis in Kenya. The fertility and viability status of the hydatid cysts collected from these livestock intermediate hosts, at slaughter, were used in this evaluation. A cross-sectional survey was carried out in Nairobi\'s Dagoretti slaughterhouse and Ndumbu-ini, pig abattoir during routine post-mortem meat inspection. All hydatid cysts detected in cattle, sheep, goats and pigs were collected for laboratory analysis to determined by microscopic examination of harvested hydatid cysts fluid for the presence of protoscolices using the 0.1% Eosin Exclusion Test. Out of the 300carcasses of sheep, goats, and pigs examined, 7%, 8% and 5% harbored the cysts, respectively. Hydatid cysts from goats showed the highest fertility (87.5%), followed by those from cattle (81.4%), pigs (80%) and sheep (57.4%). Hydatid cysts from sheep showed the highest viability (100%), followed by those from goats with 85.7%, cattle with 68.6% and pigs 50%. Sheep and goats are the animals most commonly slaughtered for parties and other festivities where meat inspection is hardly carried out. Due to this as well as the high rates of fertility and viability showed by their cysts, sheep and goats may play a greatest role since all of the fertile hydatid cysts from this species were viable. These results indicate that in any hydatid disease control programme, sheep, goats, should be the livestock species included, if satisfactory control Hydatidosis is to be achieved in Kenya. This is because, only fertile and viable hydatid cysts are capable of transmitting hydatidosis to definitive hosts.Item Study of brucellosis in a pastoral community and evaluation of the usefulness of clinical signs and symptoms in differentiating it from other flu-like diseases.(2000) Mugambi, T.J.; McDermott, J.J.; Maichomo, M.W.; Arimi, S.M.; Gathura, P.B.; Muriuki, S.M.A study of differentials causing flu-like symptoms (malaria, typhoid, streptococcal infections and rheumatoid arthritis) in 488 patients from a pastoralist area is presented. The potential usefulness of clinical signs, symptoms and diagnostic tests in ruling-in or ruling-out these diseases was investigated in the District hospital and three outlying health dispensaries. For each patient a detailed clinical history plus diagnostic test for brucellosis, typhoid, streptococcal infections and rheumatoid arthritis, and for some patients’ malaria were conducted. Incidence levels of these diseases were estimated using laboratory test results; brucellosis, 13%, typhoid, 40%: ... streptococcal infections, 6% malaria, 9%: and rheumatoid arthritis, 10%. Brucellosis could not be differentiated clinically from the other flu-like diseases but rheumatoid arthritis could.
