Serological evidence of leptospirosis in Iran; A systematic review and meta-analysis.

The research article focuses on estimating the prevalence of the infectious zoonotic disease, leptospirosis, in humans and both domestic and wild animals in Iran through a systematic review and meta-analysis of scholarly articles.

Detail Explanation of the Research Paper

The research was carried out due to a significant lack of specific information on the prevalence of leptospirosis in Iran. Leptospirosis is a zoonotic disease that leads to illness not only in humans, but also in a wide range of animals, both domestic and wild.

• For this purpose, the researchers conducted a systematic review of articles in both English and Persian from 1998 through to December 2017.
• They used various platforms and Iranian databases like Google Scholar, Medline/PubMed, Science Direct, Scopus, Web of Science, Iranmedex, Scientific Information Database (SID), Magiran, and IRANDOC in the search for content related to the prevalence of leptospirosis in Iran.
• Keyword search terms included “leptospirosis”, “Leptospira”, “serology”, “seroprevalence”, “seroepidemiology”, “serological”, “Iran”, and various animal classifications.
• 66 articles that met the inclusion criteria were selected for detailed investigation and data synthesis.

Data Findings

The systematic review and meta-analysis of the selected articles revealed leptospirosis’ seroprevalence in humans and different animal species in Iran. The researchers detailed this with specific percentage prevalence rates.

• The seroprevalence in humans was found to be 27.84% according to the Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay test (ELISA) and 19.71% according to the Microscopic Agglutination Test (MAT).
• Reviewing reports on domesticated animals indicated varying prevalence levels: cows showed a 26.62% seroprevalence rate, sheep (17.38%), goats (12.18%), and camels (22.68%).
• Among equines, prevalence rates varied significantly: horses (19.99%), donkeys (40.59%), and mules (9.10%).
• Pets such as dogs and cats had an estimated prevalence of 14.63% and 14.44% respectively.
• In rodents, the prevalence of seropositivity was estimated to be 20.96%.

Research Implications

Based on the findings, the researchers emphasize that leptospirosis has a significant seroprevalence among humans and animals in Iran. They therefore recommend further attention be given to this disease in terms of diagnosing, controlling, and preventing it to minimize its public health impact. They propose this study can serve as a comprehensive report on the status of leptospirosis in Iran, which could guide the development of public health strategies and interventions.