Abdullahi Muhammad Musa¹, David O Ehizibolo², Reuben A Kigbu¹, Bintu Umar¹, Sarah Idah¹, Samuel Mailafia³ Casmir IfeanyiChukwu Cajetan Ifeanyi⁴, Bridget Maria Jessica Adah³, Owolabi Olamide Tawa⁵ and Victor Bitrus Shammah⁴*

¹Department of Veterinary Services, Nasarawa State Ministry of Agriculture, Lafia, Nigeria
²National Veterinary Research Institute, Vom, Nigeria
³Department of Veterinary Microbiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Abuja, Abuja, Nigeria
⁴Department of Medical Laboratory Science, Faculty of Allied Health Sciences, College of Health Science, University of Abuja, Nigeria
⁵Department of Animal Health and Production Technology, Rufus Giwa Polytechnic Owo, Ondo State
⁶Department of General Studies, Federal College of Veterinary and Medical Laboratory Science Technology, Vom, Nigeria

*Corresponding Author: Victor Bitrus Shammah, Department of General Studies, Federal College of Veterinary and Medical Laboratory Science Technology, Vom, Nigeria.

Received: March 03, 2026; Published: June 02, 2026

Abstract

Fasciolosis is an economically important parasitic disease of cattle caused by liver flukes of the genus Fasciola. This study determined the prevalence of Fasciola species among cattle slaughtered at Lafia Modern Abattoir, Nasarawa State, Nigeria. A total of 400 cattle were selected using systematic random sampling and examined for Fasciola infection. Ante-mortem and post-mortem inspections were carried out, during which livers and bile ducts were examined for pathological lesions and adult flukes. Recovered flukes were preserved and identified morphologically. In addition, fecal samples were collected and analyzed using the sedimentation technique for the detection of Fasciola eggs. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and chi-square tests at a 95% confidence level. Of the 400 cattle examined, 68 were infected, giving an overall prevalence of 17.0%. Female cattle (18.9%) and animals older than four years (22.5%) showed higher infection rates, although the differences were not statistically significant (p > 0.05). Moderate liver lesions were the most common (41.2%). Combined diagnostic methods yielded a higher detection rate (18.0%) than individual methods. The findings indicate that fasciolosis remains endemic in the study area, posing economic losses and potential public health risks. Improved control measures and routine surveillance are recommended.

Keywords: Fasciola Species; Prevalence; Cattle; Abattoir; Nasarawa State

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Citation

Citation: Victor Bitrus Shammah., et al. “Prevalence of Fasciola Species in Lafia Modern Abattoir, Nasarawa State, Nigeria". Acta Scientific Veterinary Sciences 8.1 (2026): 01-08.

Copyright

Copyright: © 2026 Victor Bitrus Shammah., et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.