Seroprevalence and risk factors of infectious bovine rhinotracheitis in Ethiopia: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR) is a highly contagious viral disease causing significant economic losses in the global cattle industry. This systematic review and meta-analysis, conducted from September 3 to November 7, 2024, estimated the pooled seroprevalence of IBR and identified associated risk factors in Ethiopia. Studies published between 2018 and 2024 were retrieved from PubMed, Scopus, and ScienceDirect. The search strategy employed Boolean operators, including: (“infectious bovine rhinotracheitis” OR “IBR” OR “bovine herpesvirus-1”) AND (“epidemiology” OR “prevalence” OR “seroprevalence”) AND (“risk factors”) AND (“bovine”) AND (“Ethiopia”). This review was conducted in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. A total of 9 studies met the eligibility criteria and were included in the analysis. The study quality was assessed using appraisal tools specifically designed for cross-sectional studies. A random effects model was used to estimate the pooled seroprevalence, and all statistical analyses were performed using R software. The pooled seroprevalence of IBR in Ethiopia was 42% (95% CI: 27.0%-57.0%). Considerable heterogeneity was observed among the included studies (I2 = 99.42%, H2 = 172.74, df = 8, Q = 1436.09, p ≤ 0.001), indicating that the estimate should be interpreted with caution. Subgroup analysis suggested that seroprevalence may vary by region, with higher estimates reported in northern Ethiopia (46%; 95% CI: 17.0%-75.0%) compared to central Ethiopia (39.2%; 95% CI: 10.0%-68.0%). Several studies have reported factors such as parity, breeding method, age, sex, abortion history, and retained fetal membranes as potentially associated with IBR occurrence. Overall, these findings suggest that IBR may be a widespread health concern in Ethiopian cattle. Based on these results, it is recommended to strengthen existing disease control measures and to raise awareness among stakeholders about the distribution and risk factors of IBR throughout the country.