Investigação da prevalênica de leptospirose em equinos de tração da área urbana de Uberlândia-Minas Gerais

Abstract

Leptospirosis is a zoonosis of great relevance and worldwide distribution and seasonal occurrence, associated with rainy periods. In horses, the clinical manifestation of the disease is not frequent, however, infected animals may pose a risk to owners who currently have closer contact with the species. Little research has been carried out on the seroprevalence of leptospirosis in horses in the Uberlândia region. The aim of this study was to evaluate the seroprevalence of leptospirosis in traction horses in the city of Uberlândia, and to associate the results with risk factors found in the places where they lived. Samples of 132 horses from 30 neighborhoods in the city of Uberlândia-MG were submitted to the gold standard test for the diagnosis of leptospirosis, the microscopic agglutination test in a dark field. Fifty-four (40.9%) of the 132 animals tested were seroreactive to the serological test, with Copenhageni and Djasimam the most frequent serovars. Cohabitation with other animal species was important for infection with more than one serovar by the tested horses. The age group between 6 and 16 years showed a significant difference in the number of seraeagents, 48.15%, against 6.90% of animals from 0 to 6 years old, showing that it is an important factor for the occurrence of the disease. It was proven in this study that against Leptospiras spp. are present in traction horses in the urban region of Uberlândia, Minas Gerais, suggesting the exposure of animals to bacteria.