Figure 2 in Confounding factors affecting faecal egg count reduction as a measure of anthelmintic efficacy

Figure 2. An illustrative example of the potential effect of seasonal shifts in nematode species composition on observed faecal egg count (FEC) reduction, based on typical epidemiological patterns in sheep in temperate areas. FEC composition indicates the proportion of eggs belonging to each species, where eggs of Trichostrongylus spp., Teladorsagia circumcincta and Haemonchus contortus are not easily distinguished from each other. Months are calendar months in the northern hemisphere, with Nematodirus battus and then Teladorsagia dominating in spring and early summer, Trichostrongylus in late summer and autumn, and Haemonchus transiently dominant following favourable climatic conditions [91]. In scenario 1, only Haemonchus is resistant to treatment, with FECR of 80%; in scenario 2, only Teladorsagia is resistant (80% FECR); FEC of other species reduce by 98% following treatment. A FECRT would have different results in different months, detecting resistance (<95% FECR) only in months (% FECR in bold) in which the resistant species contributes sufficiently to total faecal egg output, and returning false-negative results for AR in other months. The simulation does not account for differences in fecundity between species, which further amplify seasonal variation in FECR. Here, FECRT conducted at different times of year produce differing results even if anthelmintic efficacy is stable within species over that period.