Intestinal parasites among food handlers in Iran: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Regarding preparing and serving foods, food handlers have an influential role in the spreading of foodborne infections. Due to the great potential to cause foodborne infections, intestinal parasites (IPs) are considered a significant public health problem in today's societies. In Iran, despite several regional reports, national data on IPs prevalence in food handlers are lacking. The aim of the present study, therefore, is to estimate the pooled prevalence of IPs infections and associated pooled odds ratio of educational level among food handlers in Iran. PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, Embase, and Google Scholar databases (international) and SID and Magiran databases (national) were systematically searched for studies that reporting the prevalence of IPs in food handlers in Iran, published between 2000 and 2020. Pooled prevalence was estimated using a random-effects model with a 95% confidence interval (CI) and depicted as a forest plot, while heterogeneity was evaluated using Cochran's Q-test. The overall pooled prevalence estimate for IPs was 19.3% (95% CI = 14.9-23.7%). Prevalence of the protozoan parasites (20%, 95% CI = 13.7-26.3%) was significantly higher than that of the helminthic parasites (1.6%, 95% CI = 1.1-2.0%). Giardia lamblia (5.2%), Entamoeba coli (5.0%), and Blastocystis spp. (4.4%), as protozoan parasites, and Ascaris lumbricoides (1.4%), Enterobius vermicularis (0.9%), and Hymenolepis nana (0.5%), as helminthic parasites, were the most commonly reported species. Food handlers with low educational levels were 20% more exposed to IPs infection, compared to those with high educational levels (OR = 1.21, 95% CI = 0.88 to 1.65). The prevalence of IPs infections among food handlers in Iran is significant. Besides taking into account this epidemiologic information, a holistic approach, including periodic stool screening, health education, and treatment of infected food handlers, will help in the control of these infections in Iran.

Prevalence estimates of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection among visceral leishmaniasis infected people in Northwest Ethiopia: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: In Ethiopia, by the end of 2018, an estimated 690,000 people are infected with HIV and the annual cases of Visceral Leishmaniasis (VL) is estimated to be between 4000 and 5000 with over 3.2 million people are at risk. Northwest Ethiopia accounts for over 60% cases of VL in the country. Prevalence of HIV infection among VL infected people in Ethiopia has not yet been synthesized. Therefore, we aimed to estimate the pooled prevalence of HIV infection among VL infected people in Northwest Ethiopia with the hope that it would guide the development of a more robust and cost-effective intervention strategies. METHODS: In this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched six international databases: PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE®, Embase, Scopus, Google Scholar, and ProQuest Dissertations & Theses. We also searched reference lists of included studies and Ethiopian universities electronic thesis and dissertation repositories. The search was performed until June 30,2019. Funnel plot symmetry visualization confirmed by Egger's regression asymmetry test and Begg rank correlation methods was used to assess publication bias. Pooled prevalence estimate was calculated using Der Simonian and Laird's random Effects model. We went further to perform univariate meta-regression and subgroup analysis to identify a possible sources of heterogeneity among the studies. STATA software (version 14, Texas, USA) was used for analysis. RESULTS: From 1286 citations identified by our search, 19 relevant studies with 5355 VL infected individuals were included in this meta-analysis. The pooled prevalence of HIV infection among VL infected individuals in Northwest Ethiopia was 24% (95%CI: 17-30%). The result of sensitivity analysis demonstrated that the pooled prevalence estimate was robust and not one-study dependent. The pooled prevalence estimate of HIV infection among VL infected people in Northwest Ethiopia ranged from 20.88% (95%CI: 15.91-25.86) to 24.86% (95%CI: 18.57-31.14) after a single study was deleted. CONCLUSIONS: The burden of HIV infection in people infected with VL in Northwest Ethiopia is considerably high. Integrating HIV/AIDS surveillance among VL infected people would improve case detection as well as prevention and control of disease spread.

Intestinal parasites among food handlers of food service establishments in Ethiopia: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Intestinal parasites remain considerable public health problems in low-income countries where poor food hygiene practice is common. Food handlers, people involved in preparing and serving food, working with poor personal hygiene could pose a potential threat of spreading intestinal parasites to the public in a community. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was, therefore, to synthesize the pooled prevalence estimate of intestinal parasites and associated pooled odds ratio of hygienic predictors among food handlers of food service establishments in Ethiopia that could aid to further bringing down the burden of intestinal parasites and it can also be used as a springboard for future studies. METHODS: We searched exhaustively for studies Published before 20 April 2019 using eight Databases; PubMed, Science Direct, Web of Science, Scopus, Embase, Google Scholar, ProQuest, and Ovid MEDLINE® complemented by the gray literature search. In the final synthesis, we included twenty study reports. We used the Cochrane Q test and I2 test to assess heterogeneity of studies, while we employed a funnel plot followed by Egger's regression asymmetry test and Begg rank correlation methods to evaluate publication bias. We also performed a point estimates and 95% confidence interval for each study using STATA version 14 statistical software. RESULTS: The overall pooled prevalence estimate of intestinal parasites among food handlers of food service establishments in Ethiopia was 33.6% (95%CI: 27.6-39.6%). Among ten intestinal parasites identified from food handlers, Entamoeba histolytica/ dispar (11, 95%CI: 7.9-14.1%) and Ascaris lumbricoides (8.8, 95%CI: 6.4-11.2%) were the most predominant intestinal parasites. Food handlers who washed hands after toilet use had 54% (OR, 0.46, 95% CI: 0.23-0.94) protection from intestinal parasites compared to those who did not. CONCLUSIONS: This study revealed that intestinal parasitic infections are notable among food handlers of food service establishments in Ethiopia, which may be a risk for transmitting intestinal parasites to food and drinks consumers through the food chain. Thus, periodic stool checkup, training on intestinal parasitic infections and personal hygiene should be applied to reduce public health and socio-economic impacts of parasitic infections.

Effect of anthelminthic treatment on helminth infection and related anaemia among school-age children in northwestern Ethiopia.

BACKGROUND: Information about improvements in the health status of population at-risk of helminth infection after anthelminthic treatment helps to evaluate the effectiveness of the large scale deworming program. The objectives of this study were to assess the impact of anthelminthic treatment on the prevalence and intensity of intestinal helminth infection, haemoglobin level and prevalence of anaemia among school-age children. METHODS: A total of 403 children attending Tikur Wuha Elementary School in Jiga, northwestern Ethiopia were enrolled in this study between February and March 2011. Formol-ether concentration and Kato-Katz methods were used to examine stool for intestinal helminth infections at baseline and one month after anthelminthic treatment. Haemoglobin level was measured using Hemocue machine at baseline and one month after anthelminthic treatment. RESULTS: Out of 403 school children examined, 15.4 % were anaemic and 58.3 % were infected with intestinal helminths at baseline. Hookworms (46.9 %), Schistosoma mansoni (24.6 %), Ascaris lumbricoides (4.2 %) and Trichuris trichiura (1.7 %) infections were common. The odds of anaemia was higher among children infected with helminths (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 3.83, 95 % CI = 1.92, 7.62) especially in those infected with hookworm (aOR = 2.42, 95 % CI = 1.34, 4.39) or S. mansoni (aOR = 2.67, 95 % CI = 1.46, 4.88) and two or more helminth species (aOR = 7.31, 95 % CI = 3.27, 16.35) than those uninfected with intestinal helminths at baseline. Significant reduction in prevalence of helminth infection (77.0 %) and increment in mean haemoglobin level (+3.65 g/l) of children infected with helminths was observed one month after anthelminthic treatment. The increase in haemoglobin level after anthelminthic treatment was significantly positively associated with the age, but negatively associated with the haemoglobin level at baseline. The change in mean haemoglobin level was significantly higher among undernourished than normal children. Percent reduction in the prevalence of anaemia among children infected with helminths was 25.4 % after anthelminthic treatment. CONCLUSIONS: The present study provides evidence that anthelminthic treatment of school-age children infected with intestinal helminth can improve haemoglobin level in addition to reducing the prevalence and intensity of helminth infections one month after treatment. This suggests that deworming of children may benefit the health of children in sub-Sharan Africa where hookworm and S. mansoni infections are prevalent.

Comparison of diagnostic performance between conventional and ultrasensitive rapid diagnostic tests for diagnosis of malaria: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Successful malaria treatment, control and elimination programs require accurate, affordable, and field-deployable diagnostic tests. A number of studies have directly compared diagnostic performance between the new ultrasensitive rapid diagnostic test (us-RDT) and conventional rapid diagnostic test (co-RDT) for detecting malaria. Thus, we undertook this review to directly compare pooled diagnostic performance of us-RDT and co-RDT for detection of malaria. METHODS: PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, Embase, and ProQuest were searched from their inception until 31 January 2021 accompanied by forward and backward citations tracking. Two authors independently assessed the quality of included studies by RevMan5 software (using the QUADAS-2 checklist). Diagnostic accuracy estimates (sensitivity and specificity and others) were pooled using a random-effect model and 95% confidence interval (CI) in Stata 15 software. RESULTS: Fifteen studies with a total of 20,236 paired co-RDT and us-RDT tests were included in the meta-analysis. Molecular methods (15 studies) and immunoassay test (one study) were used as standard methods for comparison with co-RDT and us-RDT tests. The pooled sensitivity for co-RDT and us-RDT were 42% (95%CI: 25-62%) and 61% (95%CI: 47-73%), respectively, with specificity of 99% (95%CI: 98-100%) for co-RDT, and 99% (95%CI: 96-99%) for us-RDT. In asymptomatic individuals, the pooled sensitivity and specificity of co-RDT were 27% (95%CI: 8-58%) and 100% (95%CI: 97-100%), respectively, while us-RDT had a sensitivity of 50% (95%CI: 33-68%) and specificity of 98% (95%CI: 94-100%). In low transmission settings, pooled sensitivity for co-RDT was 36% (95%CI: 9 76%) and 62% (95%CI: 44 77%) for us RDT, while in high transmission areas, pooled sensitivity for co RDT and us RDT were 62% (95%CI: 39 80%) and 75% (95%CI: 57-87%), respectively. CONCLUSION: The us-RDT test showed better performance than co-RDT test, and this characteristic is more evident in asymptomatic individuals and low transmission areas; nonetheless, additional studies integrating a range of climate, geography, and demographics are needed to reliably understand the potential of the us-RDT.

A systematic review and meta-analysis of asymptomatic malaria infection in pregnant women in Sub-Saharan Africa: A challenge for malaria elimination efforts.

BACKGROUND: In Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), where malaria transmission is stable, malaria infection in pregnancy adversely affects pregnant women, fetuses, and newborns and is often asymptomatic. So far, a plethora of primary studies have been carried out on asymptomatic malaria infection in pregnant women in SSA. Nevertheless, no meta-analysis estimated the burden of asymptomatic malaria infection in pregnant women in SSA, so this meta-analysis was carried out to bridge this gap. METHODS: PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, Embase, and ProQuest were systematically searched for relevant studies published until 4 August 2020, and also the expansion of the search was performed by October 24, 2020. We assessed heterogeneity among included studies using I-squared statistics (I2). Publication bias was assessed by visual inspection of the funnel plot and further quantitatively validated by Egger's and Begg's tests. The pooled prevalence and pooled odds ratio (OR) and their corresponding 95% Confidence Interval (CI) were estimated using the random-effects model in Stata 15 software. RESULTS: For this meta-analysis, we included 35 eligible studies. The overall prevalence estimate of asymptomatic Plasmodium infection prevalence was 26.1%% (95%CI: 21-31.2%, I2 = 99.0%). According to species-specific pooled prevalence estimate, Plasmodium falciparum was dominant species (22.1%, 95%CI: 17.1-27.2%, I2 = 98.6%), followed by Plasmodium vivax, Plasmodium malariae and Plasmodium ovale, respectively, found to be 3% (95%CI: 0-5%, I2 = 88.3%), 0.8% (95%CI: 0.3-0.13%, I2 = 60.5%), and 0.2% (95%CI: -0.01-0.5%, I2 = 31.5%). Asymptomatic malaria-infected pregnant women were 2.28 times more likely anemic (OR = 2.28, 95%CI: 1.66-3.13, I2 = 56.3%) than in non-infected pregnant women. Asymptomatic malaria infection was 1.54 times higher (OR = 1.54, 95%CI: 1.28-1.85, I2 = 11.5%) in primigravida women compared to multigravida women. CONCLUSION: In SSA, asymptomatic malaria infection in pregnant women is prevalent, and it is associated with an increased likelihood of anemia compared to non-infected pregnant women. Thus, screening of asymptomatic pregnant women for malaria and anemia should be included as part of antenatal care.

A systematic review and meta-analysis of Hymenolepis nana in human and rodent hosts in Iran: A remaining public health concern.

Hymenolepis nana, as a neglected zoonotic helminth, naturally occurs in both humans and rodents. Herein, a systematic review and meta-analysis was carried out to estimate pooled prevalence of H. nana infection among human and rodent hosts for the first time in Iran. PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and Embase databases (English articles) and SID and Magiran databases (Persian articles) were systematically searched for relevant studies published from inception till May 24, 2020. Chi2 and I2 index were used to assess the heterogeneity of the included studies. Publication bias was assessed using Egger's intercept and visual inspection of the funnel plot. Pooled prevalence was estimated using random-effects model with 95 % confidence interval (CI) and depicted as a forest plot. STATA software was used for analysis. The overall pooled prevalence estimate of H. nana in humans included 1.2 % (95 % CI = 1.0-1.4%). Subgroup analysis revealed 2.2 % (95 % CI = 1.8-2.6%) and 0.5 % (95 % CI = 0.3 to 0.8 %) of H. nana infection among school children and food handlers, respectively. In terms of rodent hosts, the overall pooled prevalence of H. nana infection included 13 % (95 % CI = 9.3-16.6%). Subgroup analysis revealed the highest rate of the infection was in Rattus spp. (19.6 %; 95 % CI = 10.6-28.6%), a genus with synanthropic behavior. It seems, despite the advancement in sanitation infrastructure and hygiene status, the H. nana infection compares to other helminthic diseases remains a challenging public health problem in Iran.

Effectiveness of insecticide-impregnated dog collars in reducing incidence rate of canine visceral leishmaniasis: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Canines are proven reservoir hosts of Leishmania infantum, the causative agent of human zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis, and therefore domestic dogs play a central role in transmitting the disease to humans. Studies on the effect of insecticide-impregnated dog collars for controlling canine visceral leishmaniasis (CanL) have been increasing; however, meta-analysis has not been conducted. This study assessed the effectiveness of insecticide-impregnated dog collars for preventing CanL. We searched (PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, Embase, Ovid Medline(R), and Cochrane library), from inception until 2 May 2020. Two authors independently performed articles screening and data extraction. We applied the RoB 2.0 tool to evaluate the risk of bias in randomized trials, while the ROBINS-I tool was used for non-randomized trials. I-squared statistics(I2) and funnel plot and Egger's test, respectively, were used to assesses heterogeneity between studies and publication bias. Relative Risk (RR) and 95% Confidence Interval (CI) were calculated using the random-effects model in Stata 14 software. Out of 242 citations identified, 14 studies comprising 3786 collared dogs and 3428 uncollared dogs were eligible for meta-analysis. The use of deltamethrin-impregnated dog collars(DMC) showed an overall effectiveness of 54% (95%CI: 35-65%, I2 = 63.2%, P = 0.002) in decreasing incidence of CanL, while 10% imidacloprid and 4.5% flumethrin collars provided an overall effectiveness of 90% (95%CI: 80-96%, I2 = 0.0%, P = 0.376). DMC efficacy stratified by follow-up duration was estimated to be 58% (RR = 0.42, 95%CI: 0.20-0.87), 54% (RR = 0.46, 95%CI: 0.31-0.68), 53% (RR = 0.47, 95%CI: 0.29-0.82) for follow-up periods of 5 to 6 months, 1 year and 2 years, respectively. The current evidence indicates that using insecticide-impregnated dog collars can reduce the risk of CanL caused by L. infantum. Therefore, insecticide-impregnated dog collars could be a viable alternative for inclusion as a public health measure for controlling CanL.

Cryptosporidium infection among people living with HIV/AIDS in Ethiopia: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Studies on the prevalence of Cryptosporidium infection in People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) are inconsistent and heterogeneous. Therefore, this systematic review with meta-analysis was performed to assess the burden of the infection relative to the proportion of CD4 + T cell count among PLWHA in Ethiopia. Articles published before 15 May 2019, have been retrieved for this systematic review using five databases; PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Google Scholar and ProQuest, supplemented by the search for gray literature. The overall pooled prevalence and pooled Odds Ratio (OR) with their 95% Confidence Intervals (CI) were estimated using STATA 14 statistical Software. Of the 255 studies retrieved, 31 were considered for the final analysis. As many as 8,645 Ethiopians infected with HIV were included in the final quantitative synthesis. The overall pooled prevalence estimate of Cryptosporidium infection among PLWHA in Ethiopia was 11% (95%CI: 0.09-0.13). HIV-infected people with low CD4 + T cell count (CD4 < 200 cells/mm3) were 13.07 times more likely to become infected with Cryptosporidium than those with high CD4 + T cell count (CD4 > 500 cells/mm3) (OR: 13.07 (95%CI: 6.38-26.75). Cryptosporidium infection in PLWHA in Ethiopia showed decreasing patterns in 2001-2010, 2011-2014, and in 2015-2019, 14.6% (95%CI: 0.076-0.217), 12.71% (95%CI: 0.086-0.167) and 6.7% (95%CI: 0.044-0.090), respectively (p < 0.001). Though the pattern of Cryptosporidium infection in HIV-infected Ethiopians showed a declining trend; it remains a considerable problem that requires improvement in routine screening for Cryptosporidium in HIV-infected people, particularly with poor or declining CD4 + T cell count.

Seroprevalence and diagnosis of HIV, HBV, HCV and syphilis infections among blood donors.

BACKGROUND: Blood transfusion is one of the most important therapeutic options of life-saving intervention for recipients who are in diseased or non-diseased conditions with severe blood loss. However, it is associated with certain risks which can lead to adverse consequences that may cause acute or delayed complications and bring the risk of transfusion-transmissible infections including HIV, Hepatitis B & C and Syphilis. So, there might be a fatal risk instead of life saving. This paper aims to provide a comprehensive and reliable tabulation of available data on seroprevalence and diagnosis of HIV, HBV, HCV and Syphilis infections among blood donors. METHODS: We searched studies reporting the prevalence rate of HIV, HBV, HCV and Syphilis infections among blood donors that were published between October 2009 and June 2016, using databases of PubMed, Scopus, MEDLINE, Elsevier, ScienceDirect, EBSCO, Google Scholar, EMBASE, and Web of Science with keywords: ``Hepatitis C Virus'', ``Hepatitis B Virus'', ``HIV'', ``Syphilis'', ``Seroprevalence'', and ``blood donor''. RESULTS: The seroprevalence of HBV and HCV was highest in African countries as compared to others continents, predominantly the West African region with a range of 10.0% to 14.96% and 1.5% to 8.69%, respectively, while the overall seropositivity of HIV and syphilis infection show a significant declining pattern through successive years globally, even though relatively higher prevalence rate was observed among older age and those with low level of education. CONCLUSION: There is a problem during selection, diagnoses and screening process in developing nations primarily due to shortage of sensitive screening test kits, highly qualified human resource and lack of proper standard operating procedures and hence, the safety of blood and blood products are the primary threats in the region. Proper clinical diagnosis and screening method should be applied during blood donation and therefore, all the donated blood should be screened properly for transfusion-transmitted infections.