PREVALENCE OF INTESTINAL, PARASITES IN INDIVIDUALS ATTENDING THE "LUIS SERGIO PERÉZ" TEACHING AND FAMILY MEDICINE ASSISTANCE UNIT

• Main Authors: I. Díaz Anciani, L. Botero, F. Ledezma, N. Molero de Bracho, M. Cotech, R. Jaouhari, W. Quintero
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English; Spanish
• Published: Universidad del Zulia,Facultad de Medicina,Departamento de Enfermedades Infecciosas y Tropicales 2000
• Subjects: prevalencia; población general; enteroparásitos; Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Public aspects of medicine; RA1-1270; Arctic; Ritchie
• Online Access: https://doaj.org/article/ed26e80d731e44f282c04ae396191b33

OBJECTIVES: To establish the prevalence of intestinal parasites in individuals attending the "Luis Sergio Pérez" Teaching and Family Medicine Assistance Unit. To compare direct method and concentrated niethod intestinal parasite recovery. METHODS: One hundred fecal samples were examined by direct wet mount and by the Ritchie concentration technique. Diarrheic samples were submitted to acid fast staining and the Kato-Katz technique was performed on samples with helmynth eggs to determine geohelmynthic intensity. RESULTS: 'The prevalence of parasitic infections was 64%. Females showed to be most aftected (73%), 67.2% of which were in the over 15 year old group. Pathogenic parasite percentage detected in feces was: Blastocystis homlnis (38.7%), Giardia lamblia ( 1 1.2%), Entamoeba histolytica (12.2%), Trichuris trichiura (6.1%) and Ascaris lurabricoides (1.0%). Direct wet mount results and Ritchie concentration technique results showed a 68% coincidence. Results for the concentration method showed to be 25% positive and direct wet mount results were 7% positive. Chi square application with a significance level (0.05) showed to be significant for B. hominis (p=0.000) and G. lamblia (p=0.000). CONCLUSIONS: An elevated prevalence of intestirial parasites was found, despite the satisfactory sanitary conditions. The predorriinant parasites were B. horninis and G. lamblia The concentration method proved to be more effective thán the direct wet mount method.