ISSN 2375-088X
African Journal of Soil Science ISSN 2375-088X Vol. 7 (1), pp. 497-500, January, 2019. © International Scholars Journals
Full Length Research Paper
Soil-transmitted helminthiasis among school age children in Ethiope East Local Government Area, Delta State, Nigeria
Egwunyenga, O. Andy1 and Ataikiru, D. Palmer2
1Department of Zoology, Delta State University, Abraka, Nigeria.
2Parasitology Laboratory, Baptist Medical Centre, Eku, Delta State, Nigeria.
*Corresponding author. E-mail: [email protected].
Accepted 23 August, 2017
Abstract
The prevalence and intensity of soil-transmitted helminth infections and their relationship to anthropometric indices of 1,351 school children from Ethiope East Local Government Area of Delta State, Nigeria were evaluated. 739 (54.70%) of the subjects were infected by soil- transmitted helminths (STH). The overall prevalences by species were Ascaris lumbricoides (48.41%), hookworms (29.76%), and Trichuris trichiura (17.39%). 174 (12.88%) were infected with two or more STHs. Males (60.81%) were generally more infected than females (43.30%), but this was only statistically significant among children aged 5 – 7 years. The mean number of eggs per gram of faeces (epg) was generally low. Analysis of epg for each species indicated that 7.8, 7.60 and 1.70% of the subjects had high intensity of infections for Ascaris, hookworms and Trichuris, respectively. There was no relationship between intensity of infections and wasting, while children with high intensity of infections were more stunted than others.
Key words: Soil-transmitted helminths ,school-age, children, nigeria,prevalence.