Sioutas Georgios, Gelasakis Athanasios I, Papadopoulos Elias
Laboratory of Parasitology and Parasitic Diseases, Faculty of Health Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece.
Laboratory of Anatomy and Physiology of Farm Animals, Department of Animal Science, School of Animal Biosciences, Agricultural University of Athens, 11855 Athens, Greece.
Pathogens. 2024 Apr 22;13(4):347. doi: 10.3390/pathogens13040347.
, the poultry red mite (PRM), is the most prevalent and harmful ectoparasite of laying hens globally. Although prevalence and risk factor studies can help veterinarians make decisions regarding farm treatments, relevant data are scarce. The present study investigated the prevalence and infestation severity of PRM in poultry farms across Greece and examined potential risk factors. AviVet traps were used to sample 84 farms (51 backyard, 33 industrial) over three years. Farm altitude, temperature, humidity, region, and production systems were assessed as potential risk factors with chi-square tests, initially for all the studied farms and then exclusively for backyard farms. The overall prevalence was 75.0% and was higher in backyard farms (80.4%) compared with industrial ones (66.7%), varying regionally from 66.7 to 90.9%. Altitude and temperature were not significant risk factors, but farms with humidity <60% had a lower infestation risk. Infestation severity did not significantly differ by risk factors. The poultry red mite is highly prevalent across Greek poultry production systems and regions. In the future, global warming, reduced acaricide options, and a ban on cage systems will all threaten a wider spatio-temporal distribution of the PRM, justifying the urgent need for effective monitoring and control methods to protect hen production and welfare and workers' health.
家鸡红螨（PRM）是全球产蛋母鸡中最普遍且有害的体外寄生虫。尽管患病率和风险因素研究有助于兽医做出关于养殖场治疗的决策，但相关数据却很匮乏。本研究调查了希腊各地家禽养殖场家鸡红螨的患病率和感染严重程度，并检查了潜在风险因素。在三年时间里，使用AviVet诱捕器对84个养殖场（51个后院养殖场、33个工业化养殖场）进行了采样。通过卡方检验评估养殖场海拔、温度、湿度、地区和生产系统作为潜在风险因素，最初针对所有研究的养殖场，然后专门针对后院养殖场。总体患病率为75.0%，后院养殖场（80.4%）的患病率高于工业化养殖场（66.7%），地区差异从66.7%到90.9%不等。海拔和温度不是显著的风险因素，但湿度<60%的养殖场感染风险较低。感染严重程度在风险因素方面没有显著差异。家鸡红螨在希腊的家禽生产系统和地区中高度普遍。未来，全球变暖、杀螨剂选择减少以及对笼养系统的禁令都将威胁到家鸡红螨更广泛的时空分布，这证明迫切需要有效的监测和控制方法来保护母鸡生产、福利以及工人健康。
