Schistosomiasis, intestinal helminthiasis and nutritional status among preschool-aged children in sub-urban communities of Abeokuta, Southwest, Nigeria.
BMC Res Notes
; 10(1): 637, 2017 Nov 28.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-29183397
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE:
Schistosomiasis and intestinal helminthiasis are major public health problems with school-aged children considered the most at-risk group. Pre-school aged children (PSAC) are excluded from existing control programs because of limited evidence of infections burden among the group. We assessed the prevalence of infections and effect on nutritional status of preschool aged children in Abeokuta, Southwestern Nigeria.RESULTS:
A community-based cross-sectional study involving 241 children aged 0-71 months was conducted in 4 sub-urban communities of Abeokuta. Urine and faecal samples were collected for laboratory diagnosis for parasites ova. Nutritional status determined using age and anthropometric parameters was computed based on World Health Organization 2006 growth standards. Data were subjected to descriptive statistics analysis, Chi square, t-test and ANOVA. Of 167 children with complete data, 8 (4.8%) were infected with Schistosoma haematobium; Schistosoma mansoni 6 (3.6%); Taenia species 84 (50.3%); Ascaris lumbricoides 81 (48.5%) and hookworm 63 (37.7%). Overall, 46.7% of the children were malnourished, 39.5% stunted, 22.8% underweight and 11.4% exhibiting wasting/thinness. Mean values of anthropometric indices were generally lower in children with co-infection than those with single infection. We observed low level of schistosomiasis but high prevalence of intestinal helminthiasis and poor nutritional status that calls for inclusion of PSAC in control programs.Key words
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Schistosomiasis
/
Child Nutrition Disorders
/
Infant Nutrition Disorders
/
Nutritional Status
/
Helminthiasis
/
Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic
Type of study:
Guideline
/
Observational_studies
/
Prevalence_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Limits:
Child, preschool
/
Female
/
Humans
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Infant
/
Male
/
Newborn
Country/Region as subject:
Africa
Language:
En
Journal:
BMC Res Notes
Year:
2017
Document type:
Article
Affiliation country: