Spatio-temporal disparities of Clonorchis sinensis infection in animal hosts in China: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract Background Clonorchis sinensis, one of the most important food-borne zoonotic trematodes, remains prevalent in China. Understanding its infection status in animals is crucial for controlling human clonorchiasis. Here we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to focus on the spatio-temporal disparities of C. sinensis infection in animals in China. Methods Data on C. sinensis prevalence in snails, the second intermediate hosts, or animal reservoirs in China were extracted from electronic databases including PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Chinese Wanfang database, CNKI, VIP, and China Biomedical Literature database. A random-effects meta-analysis model was utilized to estimate the pooled prevalence in each of the above animal hosts. Subgroup analysis and multivariable meta-regression were performed to explore potential sources of heterogeneity across studies and compare the temporal disparity of infection rates between high and low epidemic areas. Scatter plots were used to depict the biogeographical characteristics of regions reporting C. sinensis infection in animals. Results The overall pooled prevalence of C. sinensis was 0.9% (95% CI: 0.6–1.2%) in snails, 14.2% (12.7–15.7%) in the second intermediate host, and 14.3% (11.4–17.6%) in animal reservoirs. Prevalence in low epidemic areas (with human prevalence