Enterobiasis and strongyloidiasis and associated co-infections and morbidity markers in infants, preschool- and school-aged children from rural coastal Tanzania: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

BackgroundThere is a paucity of data pertaining to the epidemiology and public health impact of Enterobius vermicularis and Strongyloides stercoralis infections. We aimed to determine the extent of enterobiasis, strongyloidiasis, and other helminth infections and their association with asymptomatic Plasmodium parasitaemia, anaemia, nutritional status, and blood cell counts in infants, preschool-aged (PSAC), and school-aged children (SAC) from rural coastal Tanzania.MethodsA total of 1,033 children were included in a cross-sectional study implemented in the Bagamoyo district in 2011/2012. Faecal samples were examined for intestinal helminth infections using a broad set of quality controlled methods. Finger-prick blood samples were subjected to filariasis and Plasmodium parasitaemia testing and full blood cell count examination. Weight, length/height, and/or mid-upper arm circumference were measured and the nutritional status determined in accordance with age.ResultsE. vermicularis infections were found in 4.2% of infants, 16.7%, of PSAC, and 26.3% of SAC. S. stercoralis infections were detected in 5.8%, 7.5%, and 7.1% of infants, PSAC, and SAC, respectively. Multivariable regression analyses revealed higher odds of enterobiasis in children of all age-groups with a reported anthelminthic treatment history over the past six months (odds ratio (OR): 2.15; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.22 - 3.79) and in SAC with a higher temperature (OR: 2.21; CI: 1.13 - 4.33). Strongyloidiasis was associated with eosinophilia (OR: 2.04; CI: 1.20-3.48) and with Trichuris trichiura infections (OR: 4.13; CI: 1.04-16.52) in children of all age-groups, and with asymptomatic Plasmodium parasitaemia (OR: 13.03; CI: 1.34 - 127.23) in infants. None of the investigated helminthiases impacted significantly on the nutritional status and anaemia, but moderate asymptomatic Plasmodium parasitaemia was a strong predictor for anaemia in children aged older than two years (OR: 2.69; 95% CI: 1.23 – 5.86).ConclusionsE. vermicularis and S. stercoralis infections were moderately prevalent in children from rural coastal Tanzania. Our data can contribute to inform yet missing global burden of disease and prevalence estimates for strongyloidiasis and enterobiasis. The association between S stercoralis and asymptomatic Plasmodium parasitaemia found here warrants further comprehensive investigations.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12879-014-0644-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Prevalence and associated factors of Enterobius vermicularis infection in children from a poor urban community in Sri Lanka: a cross-sectional study

“…however it was less than the prevalence reported in primary school children (38%) in Ragama in Sri Lanka. 11 Furthermore, the prevalence in our study population was very high compared to those reported in other countries including Korea (9.2%-18.5%), 12 China (6.85%), 13 Taiwan (0.62%), 14 rural coastal Tanzania (16.7%-26.3%) 15 and Venezuela (19.1%). 16 In contrast, a comparatively high prevalence was reported in Turkey (43.8%), 17 Thailand (38.7%) 18 and Mongolia 35.8%.…”

Clinical conditions associated withintestinal strongyloidiasis in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

“…Given this fi nding and the presence of elevated monocyte counts in the strongyloidiasis group, it is unsurprising that lower relative neutrophil counts were detected in the strongyloidiasis group than in the S. stercoralis-negative group. The association between strongyloidiasis and eosinophilia has been well established, although the absence of this correlation has also been reported in the literature (28) (29) .…”

Inverstigation of Distribution of Enterobius vermicularis in Students of Primary School in Hatay

“…Canan ve arkadaşları (21) 6-9 yaş arası öğrenciler üzerinde yürüttükleri çalışmada bu parazitin görülme oranını 8-9 yaş grubu öğrencilerde (%14,7), 6-7 yaş grubunda bulunan öğrencilere (%5,5) kıyasla daha yüksek bulmuşlardır. Yapılan iki çalışmanın (10,21) sonuçları, bu çalışmamızdan elde edilen sonuçlarla uyumlu bulunmuştur. Okul öncesi çocuklarda sıklığın daha düşük olması, genel temizliğin görevliler tarafından yapılması ve dış ortam ile ilişkilerinin daha az olmasından kaynaklanıyor olabilir.…”

“…Bu parazitoz kız öğrencilerin %22,9'unda; erkek öğrencilerin %29,9'unda saptandı (Tablo 1). Bağırsak parazitinin cinsiyet ayırımı gözetmeksizin her bireyde gözlenebileceğini gösteren çalışmalar (10,16,22) bulunmakla birlikte cinsiyete göre farklı sonuçlar da bildirilmiştir (18,23…”