SynthesisBMC infectious diseases2023
Leptospirosis in humans and selected animals in Sub-Saharan Africa, 2014-2022: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in BMC infectious diseases, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
14 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 19 citations in OpenAlex.
- Systematic review of the prevalence of environmental and host-related risk factors and the zoonotic potential of leptospirosis in domestic dogs in regions impacted by environmental changes.BMC veterinary research · 2025Pooled it
- Epidemiology of human and animal leptospirosis in Kenya: A systematic review and meta-analysis of disease occurrence, serogroup diversity and risk factors.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2024Pooled it
- High Positivity Rate forTropical medicine and infectious disease · 2026Article
- Bayesian Estimation of True Prevalence and Associated Risk Factors for Leptospira spp. Among Slaughterhouse Workers and Slaughtered Cattle in the Bahr El Ghazal Region of South Sudan.Zoonoses and public health · 2026Article
- Article
- Case Report: Isolated diffuse alveolar hemorrhage as the sole severe manifestation of atypical leptospirosis without jaundice or acute kidney injury and the diagnostic value of BALF metagenomic next-generation sequencing.Frontiers in medicine · 2026Article
- Field Evaluation of Mobile Molecular Differential Tests in DRC and Nigeria.Open forum infectious diseases · 2025Article
- Bovine Leptospirosis: Serology, Isolation, and Risk Factors in Dairy Farms of La Laguna, Mexico.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Addressing the burden of leptospirosis in Africa.Tropical diseases, travel medicine and vaccines · 2025Review
- Leptospirosis.Nature reviews. Disease primers · 2025Review
- Diversity ofMicroorganisms · 2025Article
- Review
- Computational identification of natural inhibitors targeting GroEL inFrontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2025Article
- Domestic dogs in indigenous Amazonian communities: Key players in Leptospira cycling and transmission?PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundLeptospirosis is an emerging neglected tropical zoonotic disease of public health importance causing substantial morbidities and mortalities among humans. The infection is maintained within the population through interactions between humans, animals, and the environment. Understanding the burden of disease in both humans and animals is necessary for effective prevention and control in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Therefore, we aimed to determine the seroprevalence of leptospirosis in humans, selected domestic animals, and rodents in SSA.
methodsA comprehensive search was done in six databases: Scopus, PubMed, Google Scholar, CINAHL, Web of Science, and African Journals Online databases for articles published between 01 January 2014 and 30 August 2022. Thirty-seven articles distributed across 14 out of 46 countries in SSA were included. The random effects meta-analysis model was used to pool the extracted seroprevalence data.
resultsThe overall pooled seroprevalence of leptospirosis among humans was 12.7% (95% CI: 7.5,20.8), 15.1% (95% CI: 9.4,23.5), and 4.5% (95% CI: 0.4, 35.6) based on results obtained using ELISA, MAT, and PCR diagnostic methods respectively. The pooled seroprevalence estimates among cattle were 29.2%, 30.1%, and 9.7% based on ELISA, MAT, and PCR respectively. Further, the pooled seroprevalence in goats was 30.0% for studies that used MAT, and among rodents, the pooled seroprevalence estimates were 21.0% for MAT and 9.6% for PCR diagnostic criteria. The seroprevalence of leptospirosis varied extensively between studies, across SSA regions and study setting (rural or urban).
conclusionLeptospirosis is widespread in SSA in both humans and animals based on the current results of the pooled seroprevalence in the limited studies available. The burden is high in animals and humans and underestimated due to limited studies and challenges with limited diagnostic capacity in most healthcare settings in SSA. Hence, we recommend that leptospirosis should be listed as a disease of concern and be included on the list of routine diagnostics among patients presenting with febrile illness in healthcare settings. Further, we recommend the enhancement of surveillance of leptospirosis in all countries in SSA and the development of strategies with a One Health perspective to effectively prevent and control leptospirosis.
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