Pneumo-/enteritis in dromedary camels (Camelus dromedarius)

Pneumo-/enteritis is a co-occurrence of respiratory and enteric syndrome unique to juvenile weaned camels that causes high morbidities and mortalities and economic losses in food production in Saudi Arabia and the surrounding Gulf countries. This review focuses on its epidemiology, clinical impact, and control strategies in Saudi Arabia and neighboring arid Middle Eastern countries, where camel production is a major livestock sector. Pneumo-/enteritis is a multifactorial disease syndrome characterized by the concurrent or sequential development of pneumonia and enteritis in camel calves. The condition typically results from a combination of infectious agents, including viruses, bacteria, and parasites acting synergistically, often under the influence of predisposing stress factors that compromise immune function. Moreover, this review summarizes current knowledge on the epidemiology, pathogenicity and lesions associated with the major pathogens that have been reported to cause pneumo-/enteritis in dromedary camels. Unlike previous reviews that have examined camel respiratory or enteric diseases as separate entities, this review provides an integrated assessment of pneumo-/enteritis by synthesizing evidence on viral, bacterial, and parasitic co-infections and their combined contribution to disease development in camel calves., with particular emphasis on the circulating pathogens in the Middle East region with priority to those commonly recorded in Saudi Arabia and surrounding arid nations. The current inefficient protocols for diagnosis of infectious pathogens causing pneumo-/enteritis as well as the lack of vaccination protocols need to be highlighted and further future studies on implantation of diagnostic methodologies and vaccination protocols to control this syndrome are mandatory issues. Despite advances in understanding disease causation, major gaps remain in rapid field diagnostics, pathogen-specific surveillance, and effective vaccination strategies, highlighting the need for integrated control programs tailored to camel herds in arid production systems.