Toxocara species are most common roundworms of Canidae and Felidae. Human toxocariasis develops by ingesting of embryonated eggs in contaminated soil. There is no previous report of Toxocara contamination in the soil samples from the public areas in Bangkok. For this reason our study have been carried out to examine the frequency of Toxocara eggs in public yards in Bangkok, Thailand. A total of 175 sand and clay samples were collected and examined for parasite eggs. According to this study, Toxocara eggs were detected from 10 (5.71%) of 175 soil samples. The high rate of contamination in this study implies the importance of the control of this possible zoonotic disease: control of abandon of dogs and cats, is still necessary.
Although the prevalence of anti-HIV seropositivity in the Thai population has decreased in the recent years, migration of Myanmar labors as carriers into Thailand may increase the prevalence of anti-HIV seropositivity. Screening is recommended for the Myanmar migrators. Of interest, the epidemiology of anti-HIV seropositivity in Myanmar migrators has not been precisely determined. In this study, we report the prevalence of anti-HIV seropositivity in Myanmar migrators in a rural community in the Southern Region of Thailand with a high density of Myanmar migrators as fishermen. We analyzed the screening data for anti-HIV seropositivity among 250 Myanmar migrators (169 males and 81 females) who were in Thailand for less than 1 month. The anti-HIV seropositivity rate among these Myanmar migrants was 3.2%. The rates in males and females were 4.1% and 1.2%, respectively. Since these migrants can carry the disease into Thailand, screening tests as a prevention strategies are necessary.
Clinical decision-making regarding operative procedures will be influenced when the patient is known to be anti-HIV, so his or her status should be discussed with the patient and clinician responsible for other aspects of his or her care. Here, we reviewed serology screening for anti-HIV in a 1-year period at the PreAdmission Clinic of King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, the largest Thai Red Cross Society hospital. A total of 463 patients, 215 males and 248 females, were investigated, and four cases (all males) were determined to have anti-HIV seropositivity. The infection rate was 0.86%, similar to that of previous surveys of the general population. According to our study, 75% of the HIV-seropositive patients did not know their HIV status before our screening, and most of the infected cases (50%) underwent sex change surgery. The patients who underwent elective surgery in our clinic were usually anti-HIV seronegative. The risk group of our patients seems to be the sexual dysphorian patients who underwent sex change surgery. Additional screening tests for other infectious agents such as hepatitis B and hepatitis C virus is recommended. However, in a setting where HIV infection is common, such as in Thailand, the physician should practice universal precautions since any serological test poses dangers during diagnosis.
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