East Coast fever

East Coast fever, also known as theileriosis, is a disease of cattle which occurs in Africa and is caused by the protozoan parasite Theileria parva. The primary vector which spreads T. parva between cattle is a tick, Rhipicephalus appendiculatus.^[1] East Coast fever is of major economic importance to livestock farmers in Africa,^[2] killing at least one million cattle each year.^[3] The disease occurs in Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Zambia.^[3] In 2003, East Coast fever was introduced to Comoros by cattle imported from Tanzania.^[4] It has been eradicated in South Africa.^[3]

A more acute form of East Coast fever called corridor disease occurs when buffalo-derived T. parva is transmitted to cattle.^[3] Another form, called January disease, only occurs over the winter months in Zimbabwe due to the tick lifecycle.^{[citation needed]}

Native cattle are often resistant to the parasite, but not without symptoms. They are hosts to the parasite, but do not suffer as severely as foreign cattle.^[5][6]