Heterogeneity of Trypanosoma cruzi infection rates in vectors and animal reservoirs in Colombia: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: The heterogeneity of Trypanosoma cruzi infection rates among triatomines insects and animal reservoirs has been studied in independent studies, but little information has been systematised to allow pooled and comparative estimates. Unravelling the main patterns of this heterogeneity could contribute to a further understanding of T. cruzi transmission in Colombia. METHODS: A systematic search was conducted in PubMed, Medline, LILACS, Embase, Web of Knowledge, Google Scholar and secondary sources with no filters of language or time and until April 2018. Based on selection criteria, all relevant studies reporting T. cruzi infection rates in reservoirs or triatomines were chosen. For pooled analyses, a random effects model for binomial distribution was used. Heterogeneity among studies is reported as I(2). Subgroup analyses included: taxonomic classification, ecotope and diagnostic methods. Publication bias and sensitivity analyses were performed. RESULTS: Overall, 39 studies reporting infection rates in Colombia were found (22 for potential reservoirs and 28 for triatomine insects) for a total sample of 22,838 potential animals and 11,307 triatomines evaluated for T. cruzi infection. We have found evidence of 38/71 different animal species as potential T. cruzi reservoirs and 14/18 species as triatomine vectors for T. cruzi. Among animals, the species with the highest pooled prevalence were opossum (Didelphis marsupialis) with 48.0% (95% CI: 26–71%; I(2) = 88%, τ(2) = 0.07, P < 0.01) and domestic dog (Canis lupus familiaris) with 22.0% (95% CI: 4–48%; I(2) = 96%, τ(2) = 0.01, P < 0.01). Among triatomines, the highest prevalence was found for Triatoma maculata in the peridomestic ecotope (68.0%, 95% CI: 62–74%; I(2) = 0%, τ(2) = 0, P < 0.0001), followed by Rhodnius prolixus (62.0%, 95% CI: 38–84%; I(2) = 95%, τ(2) = 0.05, P < 0.01) and Rhodnius pallescens (54.0%, 95% CI: 37–71%; I(2) = 86%, τ(2) = 0.035, P < 0.01) in the sylvatic ecotope. CONCLUSIONS: To our knowledge, this is the first systematic and quantitative analyses of triatomine insects and potential animal reservoirs for T. cruzi infection in Colombia. The results highlight a marked heterogeneity between species and provide initial estimates of infection rates heterogeneity. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (10.1186/s13071-019-3541-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.