Estimation of the economic impact of a bluetongue serotype 4 outbreak in Tunisia.

Introduction: Since 1999, Tunisia has experienced multiple occurrences of Bluetongue (BT) outbreaks, leading to numerous reported cases of infection and mortality in flocks. The re-emergence of the disease in 2020 caused substantial economic losses in cattle, attributed to the incursion of serotype BTV-4.

Methods: To evaluate the economic impact of the recent BT episode, we conducted a retrospective study on outbreaks that occurred in Tunisia between August and November 2020, focusing on the impact at the owner's level and its effects on both small ruminants and cattle.

Risk-based serological survey of bluetongue and the first evidence of bluetongue virus serotype 26 circulation in Tunisia.

Background: Bluetongue (BT), a vector-borne disease of wild and domestic ruminants, is responsible for severe economic losses in flocks. To reduce this impact, a surveillance and control plan was implemented in Tunisia. However, the epidemiological situation of BT remains incompletely understood, especially for the circulating serotypes.

Risk based serological survey of Rift Valley fever in Tunisia (2017-2018).

Rift Valley fever (RVF) has been reported in the sub-Saharan region of Africa, Egypt and Arabian Peninsula - Yemen and Saudi Arabia, over the past 20 years and is a threat to both the animal and human populations in Tunisia. Tunisia is considered as a high-risk country for the introduction of RVF due to the informal movements of diseased animals already reported in the neighboring countries. The objective of this study was to assess the status of RVF in small ruminants and camels in Tunisia.

Temporal and spatial distributions of animal and human rabies cases during 2012 and 2018, in Tunisia.

Rabies is one of the most important zoonosis in Tunisia. In the last 6 years, a dramatic increase in the number of cases in animals had raised concern about the transmission dynamics of rabies and the effectiveness of established control measures. For a better understanding of the epidemiological features of rabies in Tunisia, data on animal and human rabies cases and post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) protocol, for the period from 2012 to 2018, were analysed to describe the spatial and the temporal distributions of the disease and to guide targeted rabies control measures.

Seroprevalence and associated risk factors of Chlamydia abortus infection in ewes in Tunisia.

Enzootic abortion of ewes (EAE) caused by Chlamydia abortus is a disease of ruminants that results in serious economic losses in livestock industry. The zoonotic potential of the pathogen adds a public health concern on the efforts to control the disease. We report herein a cross-sectional study that was conducted during the lambing season (June and July) in Tunisia to estimate the seroprevalence of C.