Prevalence of soil-transmitted helminths and Schistosoma mansoni among a population-based sample of school-age children in Amhara region, Ethiopia

Abstract

BackgroundFrom 2011 to 2015, seven trachoma impact surveys in 150 districts across Amhara, Ethiopia, included in their design a nested study to estimate the zonal prevalence of intestinal parasite infections including soil-transmitted helminths (STH) and Schistosoma mansoni.MethodsA multi-stage cluster random sampling approach was used to achieve a population-based sample of children between the ages of 6 and 15 years. Stool samples of approximately 1 g were collected from assenting children, preserved in 10 ml of a sodium acetate-acetic acid-formalin solution, and transported to the Amhara Public Health Research Institute for processing with the ether concentration method and microscopic identification of parasites. Bivariate logistic and negative binomial regression were used to explore associations with parasite prevalence and intensity, respectively.ResultsA total of 16,955 children were selected within 768 villages covering 150 districts representing all ten zones of the Amhara region. The final sample included 15,455 children of whom 52% were female and 75% reported regularly attending school. The regional prevalence among children of 6 to 15 years of age was 36.4% (95% confidence interval, CI: 34.9–38.0%) for any STH and 6.9% (95% CI: 5.9–8.1%) for S. mansoni. The zonal prevalence of any STH ranged from 12.1 to 58.3%, while S. mansoni ranged from 0.5 to 40.1%. Categories of risk defined by World Health Organization guidelines would indicate that 107 districts (71.3%) warranted preventive chemotherapy (PC) for STH and 57 districts (38.0%) warranted PC for schistosomiasis based solely on S. mansoni. No statistical differences in the prevalence of these parasites were observed among boys and girls, but age and school attendance were both associated with hookworm infection (prevalence odds ratio, POR: 1.02, P = 0.03 per 1 year, and POR: 0.81, P = 0.001, respectively) and age was associated with infection by any STH (POR: 1.02, P = 0.03). Age was also associated with reduced intensity of Ascaris lumbricoides infection (unadjusted rate ratio: 0.96, P = 0.02) and increased intensity of hookworm infection (unadjusted rate ratio: 1.07, P < 0.001).ConclusionsThese surveys determined that between 2011 and 2015, STH and Schistosoma mansoni were present throughout the region, and accordingly, these results were used to guide PC distribution to school-age children in Amhara.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s13071-018-3008-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Evaluating the Performance of Diagnostic methods for soil transmitted helminths against the “Gold” standard in the Amhara National Regional State, Northwest Ethiopia

“…Accurate and sensitive diagnostic methods are necessary for the clinical and public health diagnosis of helminth infections, as well as for monitoring treatment and control interventions [21]. The rate of STHs in the present study was 40.8% which goes in line with previous findings in Amhara region (36.4%) [5]. The present study is also lower than the previous result recorded 52.4% in lake Hawassa [22], but this result is higher than the prevalence obtained 25 14.5% in Jawi [27] and 36.2% in Bahir Dar [28].…”

“…The mean annual rainfall is also 1,165 mm. According to the economic and finance office of the ANRS 2017 report, the total population of children (5)(6)(7)(8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(14) years) in the region is 5,996,074 [17].…”

Prevalence and Associated Factors of Intestinal Parasites in Ethiopian Ortodox Tewahido Church Religious Students, Ethiopia

“…The other predisposing factors such as gender, age, nger nail status, habits of eating uncooked vegetables/ fruits, source of drinking water and proper toilet utilization had no association like the two studies conducted on school-age children in Amhara region, Northwest Ethiopia and reported gender, nger nail status, the habits of eating uncooked vegetables, the presence or absence of latrines, latrine usage, hand washing before meals, hand washing after defecation and water source for drinking had no association with the problem (4,33).…”

A Systematic Review and Metanalyis of Soil Transmitted Helminths Infections Among Preschool and School-age Children in Ethiopia: Evaluation of Neglected Tropica Diseases (NTDS) Elimination Program by 2020

“…Upon further assessment for eligibility, 2 studies were excluded being review articles. Finally, 88 [6,14,16, published studies between 1997 and Fabrauary 2020 ful lling the inclusion criteria were included in the nal analyses [ Figure 1]. The sample size of the included studies ranged from 100 [20] to 15,455 [14].…”

“…Finally, 88 [6,14,16, published studies between 1997 and Fabrauary 2020 ful lling the inclusion criteria were included in the nal analyses [ Figure 1]. The sample size of the included studies ranged from 100 [20] to 15,455 [14]. Atotal of 61,690 children with age of < 5 years (n = 5577) and ≥ 5 years ( n = 55731) or mix of both (n = 382) were recruited in the studies.…”