Catley A
International Institute for Environment and Development, London, UK.
Trop Anim Health Prod. 2006 Apr;38(3):171-84. doi: 10.1007/s11250-006-4365-9.
Because of severe resource and logistical constraints in large areas of Africa, disease surveillance systems need to maximize the use of information provided by livestock keepers and make correct interpretations of indigenous livestock knowledge. This paper describes the use of participatory epidemiology (PE) to compare the names, clinical signs and epidemiological features of cattle diseases as perceived by pastoralists and veterinarians. Using results from two previous studies with pastoralists in southern Sudan and Kenya, provisional translations of local disease names into modem veterinary terminology were used to develop a matrix scoring method for use with veterinarians. Matrix scoring data from pastoralists and veterinarians were then compared using simple visual comparison of summarized matrices, hierarchical cluster analysis and multidimensional scaling. The results showed good agreement between pastoralists' and veterinarians' disease names and diagnostic criteria. The matrix scoring method was easy to use and appropriate for use in under-resourced areas with minimal professional support or laboratory services. Matrix scoring could be used to assist livestock disease surveillance workers to design surveillance systems that make better use of pastoralist's indigenous knowledge and correctly interpret local disease names. The method should be combined with conventional veterinary investigation methods where feasible.
由于非洲大片地区面临严重的资源和后勤限制，疾病监测系统需要最大限度地利用牲畜饲养者提供的信息，并正确解读本土畜牧知识。本文描述了如何运用参与性流行病学（PE）来比较牧民和兽医所认知的牛病名称、临床症状及流行病学特征。利用此前在苏丹南部和肯尼亚与牧民开展的两项研究结果，将当地疾病名称临时翻译成现代兽医术语，以此开发出一种供兽医使用的矩阵评分方法。随后，通过对汇总矩阵进行简单视觉比较、层次聚类分析和多维尺度分析，对比了牧民和兽医的矩阵评分数据。结果表明，牧民和兽医在疾病名称及诊断标准方面达成了良好共识。矩阵评分方法易于使用，适用于资源匮乏、专业支持或实验室服务极少的地区。矩阵评分可用于协助牲畜疾病监测人员设计监测系统，以便更好地利用牧民的本土知识并正确解读当地疾病名称。在可行的情况下，该方法应与传统兽医调查方法相结合。
