Prevalence of multi-gastrointestinal infections with helminth, protozoan and Campylobacter spp. in Guatemalan children

Abstract

Background: The prevalence of multi-infections with helminthes, protozoans and Campylobacter spp. in Guatemalan children is a reflection of differences in the risk factors related to pathogen transmission. Methodology: Two hundred and eighty-nine fecal samples were collected from children of the Guatemalan highlands and patterns of pathogen occurrences were evaluated using an immunoassay for Campylobacter spp., a formalin-ether concentration followed by observation of unstained slides for helminthes and trichome stains of fecal smears for protozoans. Specimens were examined microscopically using 100, 400 and 1000x magnification. Results: Prevalence of Ascaris lumbricoides, Campylobacter spp., Giardia duodenalis, Entamoeba histolytica/E. dispar and Trichuris trichiura were 55.1%, 30.8%, 21.5%, 19.8% and 19.4%, respectively. Overall, the prevalence of at least one intestinal pathogen was 85.5%. Multi-infections were found in 43% of the children harboring pathogens. Conclusions: Infections with Campylobacter spp., E. histolytica/E. dispar, T. trichiura and G. duodenalis were closely associated with the presence of co-infection with A. lumbricoides. T. trichiura infection was related to co-infection with A. lumbricoides and Campylobacter spp. Infections with G. duodenalis and T. trichiura were related to co-infections with either Campylobacter spp. or E. histolytica/E. dispar. The prevalence of multi-gastrointestinal infections with helminthes, protozoans and Campylobacter spp. in children was found to be related to age and gender.

Skeletal evidence of structural violence among undocumented migrants from Mexico and Central America

“…Frequently, this cycle is compounded by nutrient losses resulting from parasitic infections. Clinical studies of impoverished Mexican and Central American communities have found high prevalences of helminth and protozoan infections (and co-infections) in malnourished children whose living conditions include dirt floors, contaminated water, and poor sanitation (Gutierrez-Jimenez et al, 2013;Jensen et al, 2009;Morales-Espinosa et al, 2003;Quihui-Cota et al, 2004. Given the likelihood of infection-nutrition interaction, the possibility that porotic cranial lesions in this sample also reflect iron sequestration as part of a physiological response to a heavy pathogen load should probably not be discounted (Grauer & Ortner, 2019;Stuart-Macadam, 1992a, 1992b.…”

Childhood parasitic infections and gastrointestinal illness in indigenous communities at Lake Atitlán, Guatemala

“…Our rates of Giardia and Cryptosporidium were lower than previously reported in the region. Close to 50% in preschoolers in three Guatemalan Western highland pre-schools were actively shedding fecal protozoa and 43% of children had multiple parasitic infections ( Jensen et al, 2009 ). 32% of children in villages around Atitlán presenting with gastrointestinal symptoms were shedding Cryptosporidium oocysts ( Bentley et al, 2004 ; Laubach et al, 2014 ).…”

“…The indigenous population in Guatemala is heterogenous with three dominant ethnicities in the Sololá Department, K’iche’, Kaqchikel, and Tz’utujil, the latter two predominant in the basin. They face disproportionate health risks compared to the non-indigenous ( Chen et al, 2017 ; Jensen et al, 2009 ; Nagata et al., 2011a ; Nagata et al., 2011b ; Nagata et al, 2009 ). Worldwide, indigenous communities face increased health risks alongside lack of access to health care and poverty ( MSPAS, 2019 ; Omarova et al, 2018 ; Poder & He, 2015 ).…”

“…Previous work in the region has linked malabsorption and evidence of systemic oxidative stress ( Solomons et al, 2015 ; Soto-Méndez et al, 2017 ; Soto-Méndez et al, 2016 ), as well as parasitic intestinal infections, to retarded growth curves in infants and preschool aged children ( Farthing et al., 1986 ). Indeed, a retrospective study of 10,586 children of ages 5–15 in Guatemala over a four-year period (2004–2007) found increased risk of severe malnutrition with infection with Giardia lamblia and Entamoeba histolytica ( Jensen et al, 2009 ) . Systemic and urinary biomarkers of oxidative stress in preschoolers in the western highlands have been strongly correlated with Giardia infections ( Soto-Méndez et al, 2016 ).…”

Peer Review #2 of "Childhood parasitic infections and gastrointestinal illness in indigenous communities at Lake Atitlán, Guatemala (v0.1)"

“…The indigenous population in Guatemala is heterogenous with three dominant ethnicities in the Sololá Department, K'iche', Kaqchikel, and Tz'utujil, the latter two predominant in the basin. They face disproportionate health risks compared to the non-indigenous (Chen et al, 2017;Jensen et al, 2009;Nagata et al, 2009). Worldwide, indigenous communities face increased health risks alongside lack of access to health care and poverty (MSPAS, 2019;Omarova et al, 2018;Poder and He, 2015).…”