Chege Naomi M, Ondigo Bartholomew N, Onyambu Frank G, Kattam Alex Maiyo, Lagat Nancy, Irungu Tabitha, Matey Elizabeth Jemaiyo
Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Egerton University, Nakuru, Kenya.
Laboratory of Malaria Immunology and Vaccinology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, NIH, Bethesda, Maryland, USA.
Malawi Med J. 2020 Jun;32(2):80-86. doi: 10.4314/mmj.v32i2.5.
Intestinal parasites are a major public health problem in the developing world and have attracted increasing levels of interest from health researchers over the past decade. Epidemiology-based studies have shown that the prevalence of intestinal parasites is high and they frequently recur in regions with poor sanitation and inadequate sewerage facilities. In this study, we determined the prevalence of intestinal parasites, their egg intensities per sample, and associated risk factors in an informal settlement.
This was a cross-sectional study conducted in three randomly selected public primary schools located in the informal settlements of Nakuru town. A total of 248 stool samples were collected from asymptomatic pupils and screened, using the Kato Katz technique, for infections caused by soil-transmitted helminths (STH). A random subset of stool samples (=96) was also screened by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to detect intestinal protozoa. Socio-demographic variables were collected using a pre-tested structured questionnaire; these data were analysed to identify risk factors for infection.
The overall prevalence of intestinal parasites was 17.3% (43/248 pupils). The overall prevalence of both STH and intestinal protozoan parasites was 1.2% and 41.7%, respectively. The most commonly diagnosed STH infection was (1.2%), followed by hookworms (0.4%) and (0.4%). The prevalence of intestinal protozoan parasites ranged from 0% to 38.5% and included , , , , and . All infections were light, with an egg intensity <100 for each of the STH infections. The prevalence of multiple infections, including intestinal protozoan parasites, was 5.2% (=5) and 0.4% (=1) for STH in the subset samples. Finally, our analysis identified several significant risk factors for intestinal parasitic infections, including goat rearing (=0.046), living in a home with an earthen floor (=0.022), the number of rooms in the household (=0.035), and the source of food (=0.016).
The low prevalence of intestinal parasites in the informal settlements of Nakuru may be attributed to improvements in hygiene and sanitation, deworming, and general good health practices that are facilitated by the Department of Public Health.
肠道寄生虫是发展中世界的一个主要公共卫生问题，在过去十年中引起了卫生研究人员越来越多的关注。基于流行病学的研究表明，肠道寄生虫的患病率很高，并且在卫生条件差和污水处理设施不足的地区经常复发。在本研究中，我们确定了一个非正式定居点中肠道寄生虫的患病率、每个样本中的虫卵强度以及相关危险因素。
这是一项横断面研究，在纳库鲁镇非正式定居点随机选择的三所公立小学进行。总共从无症状学生中收集了248份粪便样本，并使用加藤厚涂片法对土壤传播的蠕虫（STH）引起的感染进行筛查。还通过聚合酶链反应（PCR）对随机抽取的一部分粪便样本（=96）进行筛查，以检测肠道原生动物。使用预先测试的结构化问卷收集社会人口统计学变量；对这些数据进行分析以确定感染的危险因素。
肠道寄生虫的总体患病率为17.3%（43/248名学生）。STH和肠道原生动物寄生虫的总体患病率分别为1.2%和41.7%。最常诊断出的STH感染是蛔虫（1.2%），其次是钩虫（0.4%）和鞭虫（0.4%）。肠道原生动物寄生虫的患病率从0%到38.5%不等，包括贾第虫、隐孢子虫、溶组织内阿米巴、结肠内阿米巴和蓝氏贾第鞭毛虫。所有感染均为轻度，每种STH感染的虫卵强度<100。在子集样本中，包括肠道原生动物寄生虫在内的多重感染患病率，STH为5.2%（=5），蛔虫为0.4%（=1）。最后，我们的分析确定了肠道寄生虫感染的几个重要危险因素，包括饲养山羊（=0.046）、居住在有泥土地面的房屋中（=0.022）、家庭房间数量（=0.035）和食物来源（=0.016）。
纳库鲁非正式定居点肠道寄生虫患病率较低可能归因于公共卫生部推动的卫生和环境卫生改善、驱虫以及一般良好的健康习惯。
