PREVALENCE OF INTESTINAL PARASITES IN child day care centers: EPIDEMIOLOGICAL SIGNIFICANCE

Abstract

Intestinal parasites are among the most commonly found pathogens in humans and are considered a public health problem. The frequency of intestinal parasites was evaluated in children and staff at two day care centers in the city of Ituiutaba, Brazil and health encouragement activities were developed. For parasite detection in stool samples the Ritchie's technique and the Hoffman-Pons-Janer, Baermann-Moraes, Willis and Ziehl-Neelsen methods were applied. Of 140 children, 88 (62.9%) were positive, where Giardia intestinalis cysts were present in 65 children (51.1%), Entamoeba coli in 22 (17.3%), Endolimax nana in 12 (9.4%), Entamoeba histolytica/E. dispar in 9 (7%), Hymenolepis nana eggs were found in 5 (4%), hookworms in 4 (3.1%), Ascaris lumbricoides and Enterobius vermicularis in 3 (2.3%) and Strongyloides stercoralis, Trichuris trichiura, Cryptosporidium spp. and Iodamoeba butschlii in one child (0.8%). Among the 41 employees examined, 10 (24.3%) were positive, E. coli cysts were found in 6 samples (35.2%) and E. nana in 5 (29.4%), followed by E. histolytica/E. dispar in 4 (23.6%) and G. intestinalis and E. vermicularis eggs in (5.9%). The data show the high frequency of intestinal parasites in fecal samples analyzed and demonstrate the importance of adopting preventive measures such as health and education involving the community.

Enterobius vermicularis in Brazil: An integrative review

“…The available data on the frequency of E. vermicularis was derived from 25 studies that employed more than one technique, each based on different methodological principles 3 , 12 - 14 , 20 - 22 , 25 , 29 , 32 - 47 . Conversely, 29 studies utilized a single technique, either in isolation or in conjunction with helminth larvae concentration techniques 4 , 5 , 7 - 11 , 15 - 19 , 23 , 24 , 26 - 28 , 30 , 31 , 35 , 48 - 56 .…”

“…E. vermicularis infection predominantly impacts children 5 , 6 , 7 , 12 , 24 , 56 . Excluding the study conducted in Sumidouro/RJ and Ituiutaba/SP 25 , 29 , the infection frequency among children-only studies ranged from 0.5% in Rio de Janeiro/RJ to 72.1% in Natal/RN. The infection rates among children in Brazil fluctuate based on the region under study and the characteristics of the child population, such as family income, residential area (rural or urban), and primarily, their exposure to crowded environments.…”

“…The available data on the frequency of E. vermicularis was derived from 25 studies that employed more than one technique, each based on different methodological principles 3,[12][13][14][20][21][22]25,29,[32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47] . Conversely, 29 studies utilized a single technique, either in isolation or in conjunction with helminth larvae concentration techniques 4,5,[7][8][9][10][11][15][16][17][18][19]23,24,[26][27][28]30,31,35,[48][49][50][51][52]…”

Enteroparasitoses e infecções sexualmente transmissíveis em uma comunidade rural do Baixo Sul da Bahia

“…As parasitoses intestinais também se enquadram como importantes problemas de saúde pública, principalmente em populações pobres de países em desenvolvimento 7 . Estima-se que haja 3,5 bilhões de pessoas infectadas por enteroparasitos no mundo, causando complicações em aproximadamente 450 milhões delas, sendo as crianças as mais atingidas, sobretudo as que vivem em vulnerabilidade socioeconômica [8][9][10][11] .…”