Phenotypical Identification and Toxinotyping of Clostridium perfringens Isolates from Healthy and Enteric Disease-Affected Chickens

Table 3

Univariable logistic regression analysis of risk factors for the presence of C. perfringens in diseased chicken.

Variables	Covariable	No. of chickens	No. of chickens positive for C. perfringens(%)	95% CI^a	OR (95% CI)	-value^b
Farm location	Hilly area	6	1 (16.67)	0.42–64.12	Reference	0.309
	Plain land	64	24 (37.50)	25.70–50.49	3 (0.33–27.23)
Birds type	Layer	21	8 (38.10)	18.10–61.56	1.16 (0.35–3.84)	0.964
	Broiler	23	8 (34.78)	16.37–57.26	1 (0.30–3.27)
	Sonali	26	9 (34.62)	17.21–55.66	Reference
Flock size^c	Small	9	3 (33.33)	7.48–70.07	1.3 (0.23–7.31)	0.674
	Medium	18	5 (27.78)	9.69–53.48	Reference
	Large	43	17 (39.53)	24.97–55.59	1.7 (0.13–1.07)
Chicken age^d	Chick	3	0 (0.00)	—	1.71 (0.02–2.23)	0.619
	Pullet	4	2 (50.00)	6.75–93.24	4 (0.21–75.65)
	Finisher	5	1 (20.00)	0.50–71.64	Reference
	Hen	14	6 (42.86)	17.66–71.13	3 (0.26–34.19)
	Starter	20	6 (30.00)	11.89–54.27	1 (−)
	Grower	24	10 (41.67)	22.10–63.35	2.85 (0.27–29.56)
Feed types	Homemade	7	3 (42.86)	9.89–81.59	0.73 (0.14–3.65)	0.907
	Mash	15	5 (33.33)	11.82–61.61	Reference
	Pellet	48	17 (35.42)	22.16–50.54	0.66 (0.10–4.20)
Litter materials	No use	11	3 (27.27)	6.02–60.97	3.37 (0.46–24.28)	0.006^b
	New	20	2 (10.00)	1.23–61.69	Reference
	Previously used	39	20 (35.71)	34.78–67.58	9.47 (1.93–46.46)
Materials type	Straw	5	3 (60.00)	14.66–94.72	4 (0.43–37.10)	0.606
	Cage	11	3 (27.27)	6.02–60.97	Reference
	Rice husk	15	6 (40.00)	16.33–67.02	1.33 (0.30–5.88)
	Saw dust	39	13 (33.33)	19.08–50.21	1.77 (0.33–9.55)
Floor type	Muddy	5	2 (40.00)	5.27–85.33	1.70 (0.24–11.95)	0.475
	Semi pucca	32	9 (28.13)	13.74–46.74	Reference
	Concrete	33	14 (42.42)	25.47–60.78	1.88 (0.66–5.29)
Water source	Pond	1	0 (0.00)	—	Omitted	0.730
	Tube well	29	10 (34.48)	17.93–54.33	Reference
	Tank water	40	15 (37.50)	22.72–54.19	1.14 (0.42–3.09)
Vaccination	Yes	61	22 (36.07)	24.16–49.37	1.12 (0.25–4.96)	0.873
	No	9	3 (33.33)	7.48–70.07	Reference
Deworming	Yes	25	9 (36.00)	17.97–57.47	1.01 (0.36–2.82)	0.970
	No	45	16 (35.56)	21.86–51.21	Reference
Use of antibiotics	Yes	54	23 (42.59)	29.23–56.79	5.19 (1.07–25.13)	0.027
	No	16	2 (12.50)	1.55–38.34	Reference
Use of probiotics	Yes	13	7 (53.85)	25.13–80.77	2.52 (0.74–8.60)	0.131
	No	57	18 (31.58)	19.90–45.24	Reference
Use of feed enzymes	Yes	31	12 (38.71)	21.84–57.81	1.26 (0.47–3.37)	0.641
	No	39	13 (33.33)	19.08–50.21	Reference
Use of feed supplements	Yes	63	24 (38.10)	26.14–51.20	3.69 (0.41–32.57)	0.212
	No	7	1 (14.29)	0.36–57.87	Reference
Intestinal lesions	Ballooned with gas	5	2 (40.00)	5.27–85.33	6.22 (0.72–53.37)	0.001^b
	Ulceration	13	5 (38.46)	13.85–68.42	5.83 (1.13–29.85)
	Necrosis	21	15 (71.43)	47.82–88.71	23.33 (5.09–106.81)
	Hemorrhage	31	3 (9.68)	2.04–25.75	Reference

^a-Confidence interval, ^b-significance, which is ≤0.05, ^c-flock size which are small (≤500), medium (501–1000) and large (≥1000), ^d-chicken age: in case of broiler and Sonali, [starter (1–21 days), grower (22–42) and finisher (≥42 days)]; in case of layer, [chick (1–28 days), pullet (29–105 days), and hen (≥105 days)].