Giardiasis as a neglected disease in Brazil: Systematic review of 20 years of publications.

• Published in: PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases
• Main Authors: Camila Henriques Coelho, Maurício Durigan, Diego Averaldo Guiguet Leal, Adriano de Bernardi Schneider, Regina Maura Bueno Franco, Steven M Singer
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2017
• Subjects: Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Public aspects of medicine; RA1-1270; Arctic; Prisma
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0006005; https://doaj.org/article/469949fc61f848669870b1e7723bed3b

INTRODUCTION:Giardiasis is an intestinal infection that affects more than two hundred million people annually worldwide; it is caused by the flagellated protozoan Giardia duodenalis. In tropical countries and in low or middle-income settings, like Brazil, its prevalence can be high. There is currently no systematic review on the presence of G. duodenalis in patients, animals or water sources in Brazil. METHODS:This systematic review was performed according to recommendations established by Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA). As databases for our searches, we have used PubMed, Embase, Scopus and the Brazilian database SciELO using the keywords «Giardia*» and «Brazil». RESULTS:This systematic review identified research studies related to G. duodenalis in water, giardiasis in animals, prevalence of giardiasis across Brazilian regions, genotyping of strains isolated in humans, and giardiasis in indigenous populations. We also propose a network of G. duodenalis transmission in Brazil based on genotypes analyses. CONCLUSION:This is the first time within the last twenty years that a review is being published on the occurrence of G. duodenalis in Brazil, addressing relevant issues such as prevalence, molecular epidemiology and analytical methods for parasite detection.