Refeeding the malnourished child: effect on the fecundity of trichuris trichiura and ascaris lumbricoides - abstract

ABSTRACT

Ten children with either Trichuris trichiura and/or Ascaris lumbricoides infection were admitted to the nutrition rehabilitation ward at the Tropical Metabolism Research Unit, U.W.I. Treatment with anthelminthic was delayed until the children attained their normal weight-for-height. Total daily stool output and changes in faecal egg density were monitored for each child, the latter by Kato analyses of sub-samples taken from all daily stools, from admission through to anthelminthic treatment. Worm burdens were then assessed by the collection of expulsions. The fecundity of the whipworm appeared not to be affected by dietary rehabilitation. However, roundworm fecundity decreased, in some instances to zero. In some cases, the roundworms were expelled during the course of refeeding. Refeeding was seen to have an antagonistic effect on the fecundity of A. lumbricoides. The fact that whipworm fecundity went unaltered may be an indication of modulation of the host immune response (AU)