University of Malakand, Department of Zoology, Lower Dir, Pakistan.
University of Karachi-Karachi, Department of Zoology, Karachi, Pakistan.
Braz J Biol. 2021 Mar 12;82:e238953. doi: 10.1590/1519-6984.238953. eCollection 2021.
Infection caused by geo-helminth parasites are called geohelminthiasis are one of the global health problems. Vegetables eaten raw is the principal source of transmission of geo-helminth parasites. Pakistani people believe that eating raw vegetables are a significant source to get important vitamins and minerals. Based on the high incidence of pathogenic parasites and cultivating different vegetable types in the study areas, we conducted this study to evaluate the geo-helminth contamination of raw vegetables in northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. This is a descriptive study comprised, 1942 samples of 25 various types of vegetables. The samples were examined in physiological saline solution using sedimentation and centrifugation methods. The findings were analyzed by Graph-Pad version 5. P value less than 0.05 (95% CI) was considered significant. Results showed that 16.5% (n=322) of all vegetables were contaminated with one or more type of geo-helminth parasites. Garlic was the highest (35%) and cauliflower the lowest (4%) contaminated samples respectively. Ascaris lumbricoides was the most common geo-helminth found followed by hook worm species while Trichuris trichura was the least in all the vegetable samples. Leafy vegetables were highly contaminated 25.3% than vegetables with root parts 21.2% and fruity 9.09%. More than half of the contaminated vegetables were contaminated with single species of geo-helminth (P<0.05) while less than half with multiple types of geo-helminth contamination. Ninety two vegetables samples were contaminated with 2 species of parasites (P<0.05) and 45 with 3 (P>0.05) species of geo-helminth parasites. Education level of vendors and means of display were not significantly associated while types of vegetable used were significantly associated with the prevalence of parasites. The findings of this study provide evidence that consumption of raw vegetable has a high risk of acquiring geo-helminth infections. The authors believe that preventing the human to enter to the vegetable farmland for defecation, avoiding the irrigation of agricultural fields via night soil, and educating the people on proper washing and cooking of vegetables may be useful in reducing parasitic infections.
由土壤传播的寄生虫感染被称为土壤传播寄生虫病，是全球健康问题之一。生吃蔬菜是土壤传播寄生虫的主要传播途径。巴基斯坦人认为，吃生蔬菜是获取重要维生素和矿物质的重要来源。基于研究地区高发病原体寄生虫和不同蔬菜类型的种植，我们进行了这项研究，以评估巴基斯坦西北开伯尔-普赫图赫瓦省生蔬菜的土壤传播寄生虫污染情况。这是一项描述性研究，包括 1942 份 25 种不同类型蔬菜的样本。使用生理盐水溶液通过沉降和离心法对样本进行检查。使用 Graph-Pad 版本 5 分析结果。P 值小于 0.05（95%置信区间）被认为具有统计学意义。结果显示，所有蔬菜中有 16.5%（n=322）受到一种或多种类型的土壤传播寄生虫的污染。大蒜的污染率最高（35%），花椰菜的污染率最低（4%）。在所有蔬菜样本中，最常见的土壤传播寄生虫是蛔虫，其次是钩虫，而鞭虫最少。叶菜类蔬菜的污染率最高（25.3%），根茎类蔬菜（21.2%）和水果类蔬菜（9.09%）的污染率较低。超过一半的受污染蔬菜受到单一物种的土壤传播寄生虫污染（P<0.05），而不到一半的受多种土壤传播寄生虫污染。92 个蔬菜样本受到两种寄生虫的污染（P<0.05），45 个样本受到三种（P>0.05）土壤传播寄生虫的污染。供应商的教育水平和展示方式与寄生虫的流行没有显著相关性，而蔬菜的类型与寄生虫的流行有显著相关性。本研究结果表明，食用生蔬菜有感染土壤传播寄生虫的高风险。作者认为，防止人类进入菜地排便，避免农田夜间粪便灌溉，以及教育人们正确清洗和烹饪蔬菜，可能有助于减少寄生虫感染。
