Diarreia em crianças menores de cinco anos no Hospital Geral do Bengo

A doença diarreica constitui uma das principais causas de morte em crianças menores de cinco anos em Angola. O presente estudo assume como principal objectivo identificar os agentes patogénicos causadores de diarreia, entre eles vírus, parasitas e bactérias, das crianças admitidas no Hospital Geral do Bengo. Material de estudo - O estudo iniciou-se em Setembro de 2012, tendo sido incluídas crianças menores de 5 anos admitidas no Hospital Geral do Bengo por diarreia (serviço de urgência e consulta externa) até Outubro de 2013, sem história de antibioterapia.

Implementação de sistema de reutilização de águas residuais urbanas para rega de zonas verdes com elevado contacto humano

Dissertação apresentada na Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia da Universidade Nova de Lisboa para obtenção do grau de Mestre em Engenharia Sanitária

Indicadores das condições nutricionais na região Polonoroeste: V. Desnutrição protéico-energética e parasitoses intestinais em um grupo de crianças de 3 a 72 meses de idade da cidade de Mirassol D'Oeste, Mato Grosso, Brasil

Este trabalho tem por objetivo caracterizar a desnutrição protéico-energética associada a parasitose intestinal em grupo de 149 crianças de ambos os sexos, na faixa etária de 3 a 72 meses, da cidade de Mirassol D'Oeste, na região do Projeto Polonoroeste em Mato Grosso. De cada criança foram coletados os seguintes dados: sexo, peso, idade e amostra de fezes para exame parasitológico. Os dados peso/idade obtidos foram analisados pelos critérios de GOMEZ. Utilizou-se como padrão de referência o National Center for Health Statistic (NCHS). Para diagnóstico dos parasitas intestinais executou-se o método de Hoffman, Pons e Janer. O grupo estudado constitui-se em sua maioria de crianças desnutridas, sendo a forma leve de desnutrição mais comum que as formas moderada e grave. As enteroparasitoses foram encontradas em 69% das amostras examinadas. A "Giardia lamblia" foi o protozoário mais comum e o "Ancilostomídeo" o helminto mais encontrado. O teste X² não mostrou relação de dependência entre o estado nutricional e a freqüência de enteroparasitoses.

Parasitological and serological studies on Amoebiasis and other intestinal parasitic infections in Recife and its suburban area, northeast Brazil

Parasitological examinations were carried out during April to August, 1987, with 187 out-patients of the IMIP hospital, located in the center of Recife City, and 464 inhabitants of several villages around Cabo City, 50 Km southeast of Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil. Approximately 71% of the IMIP patients and 92% of the Cabo inhabitants were infected with at least one species of intestinal parasite. There was minimum difference in the prevalence rate of Trichuris trichiura between two areas, whereas the prevalence rates of Ascaris lumbricoides, hookworms, Strongyloides stercoralis, Schistosoma mansoni and Entamoeba histolytica were higher in the inhabitants of the Cabo City area. Only Giardia lamblia was more prevalent in the out-patients of IMIP hospital. Test tube cultivation revealed that the prevalence rate of Necator americanus in both areas was much higher than that of Ancylostoma duodenale , and also that the prevalence rate of S. stercoralis of the IMIP patients and Cabo inhabitants were 4.5% and 9.6%, respectively. Six hundred and fifteen sera were serologically examined for amoebiasis by the gel diffusion precipitation test (GDP) and enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using the antigen prepared from axenically cultured trophozoite of E. histolytica (strain HM-ITMSS). No positive reaction was observed in all of the sera as examined by GDP, while 32 out of 615 sera were positive on ELISA.

Giardíase em creches mantidas pela prefeitura do município de São Paulo, 1982/1983

Durante os anos de 1982 e 1983, foram realizados exames parasitológicos de fezes em 3.076 crianças de 0-6 anos, matriculadas em 52 creches mantidas pela Prefeitura do Município de Sáo Paulo e em 50 manipuladores de alimentos (funcionários da cozinha), relativos a 18 creches. Estudou-se a prevalência de infecção por Giardia lamblia conforme sexo e faixa etária do hospedeiro e sazonalidade da infecção. A giardíase foi mais freqüente nas faixas etárias compreendidas entre 1-4 anos. A prevalência média foi 32,8% entre as crianças e 4,0% entre os manipuladores de alimentos. O estudo da sazonalidade de infecção revelou ser a giardíase, em 1982, mais prevalente no Outono e Primavera; em 1983, as maiores prevalências ocorreram no Outono e Verão. Estudos estatísticos revelaram não haver associação entre sexo e prevalência de infecção, não ocorrendo também nenhuma diferença significativa entre as quatro regiões metropolitanas estudadas (p > 0,05). O modo mais provável de aquisição de G. lamblia nas creches estudadas foi através do contato inter-humano, uma vez que tanto os fatores ambientais, como outros, incriminados na veiculação da giardíase através da água em outros países, diferem dos encontrados em nosso Município. Os manipuladores de alimentos tiveram papel pouco expressivo como fonte de infecção, pois a prevalência de infecção nesses indivíduos foi de apenas 4,0%.

Prevalence of intestinal parasitic infection in five farms in Holambra, São Paulo, Brazil

A parasitological survey was carried out on 222 inhabitants of five farms in Holambra, located 30 km north of Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil, on October 1992. Approximately 70% of the inhabitants were found to be infected with at least one species of intestinal parasite. The positive rates of 6 helminths and 7 protozoan species detected are as follows: 5.4% Ascaris lumbricoides; 8.6% Trichuris trichiura; 19.8% Necator americanus; 10.4% Strongyloides stercoralis; 14% Enterobius vermicularis; 0.9% Hymenolepis nana; 3.2% Entamoeba histolytica; 2.7% E. hartmanni; 9.9% E. coli; 14.0% Endolimax nana; 2.3% Iodamoeba butschlii; 10.4% Giardia lamblia; 37.8% Blastocystis hominis. The positive rates of helminth infection were generaly higher in the younger-group under 16 years-old than those in the elder group aged 16 or more, whereas the infection rates of protozoan species were higher in the elder group. The infection rate of Strongyloides was found to be 10.4% by a newly developed sensitive method (an agarplate culture methods).

Intestinal parasites in school food handlers in the city of Uberlândia, Minas Gerais, Brazil

In order to verify the presence of intestinal parasites in food handlers, stool samples were collected from 104 cooks and their helpers that were working in food preparation in 20 public elementary schools, in various areas of the city of Uberlândia, Minas Gerais, Brazil. The samples were collected during the months of November and December, 1988, in plastic flasks containing a 10% formaldehyde solution and processed by the Hoffmann, Pons & Janer method. The sediment was examined using triplicate slides. All individuals were females aged between 24 to 69 years. Intestinal parasites were found in 85.0% of the studied schools and 47.1% of the studied food handlers (cooks and helpers) were found to be positive. Among the 49 infected food handlers, 32 (65.3%) carried a single parasite and 17 (34.7%) carried two parasites. The following intestinal parasites were found: Giardia lamblia (21.1%), Entamoeba coli (21.1%), hookworms (9.6%), Ascaris lumbricoides (5.8%), Entamoeba histolytica (2.9%), Hymenolepis nana (1.9%), Strongyloides stercoralis (1.0%). These data emphasize the need for a rigid semi-annual control in all school food handlers, including diagnosis, specific treatment and orientation about the mechanisms of transmission of the intestinal parasites.

Prevalência de parasitoses intestinais nas crianças e conhecimentos, atitudes e práticas dos encarregados de educação - Estratégias de Intervenção (Ilha do Fogo, Cabo Verde)

As doenças tropicais negligenciadas persistem exclusivamente em populações de baixa renda e marginalizadas, sendo esquecidos os progressos necessários para a sua prevenção, eliminação e erradicação. A lista destas doenças é extensa, na qual está incluída a doença parasitária intestinal com origem em agentes infecciosos como os protozários e os helmintas. De distribuição mundial, estas infecções ocorrem frequentemente em regiões quentes, húmidas e desprovidas de saneamento básico, afectando particularmente crianças e adultos jovens, devido à sua susceptibilidade e exposição. As infecções causadas por parasitas intestinais são muitas vezes assintomáticas ou com predomínio de sintomas inespecíficos, e dependendo da carga parasitária e do estado nutricional das crianças podem contribuir para o atraso de crescimento, défice ponderal e dificuldade de aprendizagem. Neste contexto, foi realizado um estudo para determinar a prevelência de parasitoses intestinais nas crianças em idade escolar e os conhecimentos, atitudes e práticas dos seus encarregados de educação, na Ilha do Fogo, Cabo Verde. A amostra abrangeu 200 crianças em idade escolar, sendo 41,7% do sexo masculino e 58,3% do sexo feminino, com idades compreendidas entre os 6 e os 16 anos. Foi observada uma amostra de fezes por cada indivíduo, tendo sido utilizadas as técnicas de laboratório de observação directa e a técnica de concentração de Ritchie, ambas com coloração de lugol. Às crianças do estudo foram também avaliadas as variáveis antropométricas, idade, estatura e peso. Aos encarregados de educação das crianças foi aplicado um questionário para identificação dos conhecimentos, atitudes e práticas relativamente à infecção por parasitas intestinais. Foram observados parasitas intestinais em 51,8% das crianças. Das sete espécies de parasitas intestinais encontradas as mais frequentes foram a Entamoeba coli e Entamoeba histolytica/dispar, seguindo-se a Giardia intestinalis e Enterobius vermicularis e, por fim Iodomoeba buetschlii, Hymenolepis nana e Ascaris lumbricóides. A associação parasitária mais frequentemente encontrada verificou-se entre as espécies Entamoeba coli e Entamoeba histolytica/dispar. Cinquenta por cento das crianças apresentavam um estado de malnutrição aguda, 14,87% um estado de malnutrição crónica e 28,40% um estado de malnutrição global. Os conhecimentos, atitudes e práticas de prevenção de infecções parasitárias intestinais por parte dos encarregados de educação, revelaram algumas deficiências. A procura de diferenças/associações entre a variável Estar parasitado e outras variáveis em estudo, permitiu concluir que as crianças parasitadas viviam em habitações com menor número de quartos, não tinham o hábito de lavar sempre as mãos depois de defecar, não bebiam água desinfectada na escola, e não tinham casa de banho na habitação. Consideramos três actores locais como indispensáveis na implementação das medidas de controlo das parasitoses intestinais na Ilha do Fogo: as delegacias de saúde, as delegações de educação e as autarquias dos três concelhos (S.Filipe, Santa Catarina e Mosteiros). Como grupos alvo e beneficiários directos da intervenção propomos a comunidade escolar (alunos, encarregados de educação, gestores, professores e cozinheiras) e os profissionais de saúde (médicos, enfermeiros, agentes sanitários e técnicos de laboratório). Como intervenções gerais definimos a formação, a educação para a saúde, a desparasitação regular, os rastreios, o diagnóstico e tratamento precoce, a melhoria do saneamento e da higiene.

Study of enteroparasites infection frequency and chemotherapeutic agents used in pediatric patients in a community living in Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil

Parasitic infections caused by intestinal protozoan and helminths affect more than two billion people worldwide and chemotherapy is the most commonly used therapeutic procedure. Considering the problems created by parasitic infections and the incorrect use of drugs, the aim of this work was to detect the frequency of enteroparasites infection and to estimate the use of chemotherapeutic agents in children living in the periphery of the city of Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil. Ninety-six preschool age children, who had parasitological exams and who used antiparasitic drugs, were analyzed. The efficacy of treatment was evaluated by stool examination repeated six months after treatment. The same diagnostic test was used to evaluate parasitological cure, which was defined as absence of eggs and cysts in the stool. From these children, 79 (82.3%) were contaminated by some species of parasite, the most prevalent were Ascaris lumbricoides, Trichuris trichiura and Giardia lamblia. The most commonly used drugs were mebendazole (86% of prescriptions) and metronidazole (30.3%). The cure rate in the 79 children, examined 6 months after treatment, was 65.3% for A. lumbricoides and 66.1% for T. trichiura. This study suggests that a continuous education program regarding the prevention and treatment of parasitic infections is an essential tool for their eradication.

Enteroparasitic occurrence in fecal samples analyzed at the University of Western São Paulo-UNOESTE clinical laboratory, Presidente Prudente, São Paulo State, Brazil

This study aims to analyze the enteroparasitic occurrence in children from 0 to 12 years old consulted at the University of western São Paulo Clinical Laboratory, Presidente Prudente, SP, Brazil, in relation to the socioeconomic profile of the attended children. Stool samples were examined and a questionnaire was applied with the objective of knowing the patient's age, sex, medical attendance, characteristic of the habitation, provisioning of water, dejection and domestic waste fates, use of footwear and clinical signs. The software EPI INFO 6 (Version 6.04b) was used for the elaboration of the data bank structure and analysis after previous data codification. Among 1,000 children analyzed, as many as 21.3% presented some kind of parasite. The most frequent protozoan was Giardia lamblia (7.3%) followed by Entamoeba coli (3.9%). The most frequent helminth was Enterobius vermicularis (1.9%) followed by Hymenolepis nana (0.5%). The most frequent protozoan association was Giardia lamblia / Entamoeba coli (0.9%).

Blastocystis hominis and other intestinal parasites in a community of Pitanga City, Paraná State, Brazil

The objective was to estimate the prevalence of Blastocystis hominis, to evaluate the effectiveness of different techniques for its diagnosis as well as to estimate the prevalence of other intestinal parasites in the community of Campo Verde, a district of Pitanga. The work was carried out from August to October 2004. Samples of feces from children and adults were collected and submitted to the techniques of direct wet mount, flotation in zinc sulphate solution, tube sedimentation, sedimentation in formalin-ether and staining by Kinyoun and iron hematoxylin methods. From 181 studied individuals, 128 (70.7%) showed protozoa and/or helminths in stool samples. The most prevalent species were Endolimax nana (33.7%); B. hominis (26.5%); Giardia lamblia (18.2%); Entamoeba coli (17.1%); Ascaris lumbricoides (16.6%); Iodamoeba bütschlii (9.4%); and ancylostomatidae (7.7%). B. hominis was only identified by the techniques of direct wet mount, sedimentation in formalin-ether and staining by iron hematoxylin, though the latter was less sensitive than the other methods. The high frequency of B. hominis demonstrated by this study indicates the need to include laboratory techniques that enable identification of the parasite on a routine basis.

Intestinal parasitoses and environmental factors in a rural population of Argentina, 2002-2003

We evaluate the prevalence of intestinal parasites in 504 people and the degree of association between environmental variables and parasites found in population, soil and water in a rural area of Argentina during 2002-2003. A structured survey was used to evaluate the environmental variables and fecal-human, soil and water samples were analyzed. The prevalence of parasites was 45.4%. Most prevalent protozoa were Blastocystis hominis (27.2%) and Giardia lamblia (6.9%), while the most prevalent helminth was Ascaris lumbricoides (3.8%). The analyzed environmental variables showing association (p < 0.05) with presence of parasites in population were: cardboard-tin or wooden house, dirt floor, home or communal water pump, faucet outside the house or public faucet and cesspool or latrine. Parasite forms were found in 82.3% of the soil samples and in 84.2% of the water samples. In both samples we found parasites that were also found in people. In this study we have found deficient sanitary conditions associated with presence of parasites in population and we have evidenced that contaminated soil and water were the source of these parasites.

Prevalence of intestinal parasites in children from public daycare centers in the city of Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil

The objective of this study was to verify the occurrence of intestinal parasites in 3 to 6-year-old children from daycare centers maintained by the municipal government of Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Coproparasitological tests performed in 472 children have shown that 24.6% of them had some type of parasites, 6.6% of the children having more than one type. Among protozoa, Entamoeba coli (14.0%) and G. duodenalis (9.5%) were the most prevalent, whereas Ascaris lumbricoides (3.0%) and Trichuris trichiura (1.1%) were the most frequent among the helminths. Thus, we can observe that intestinal parasites still represent a serious public health problem in Belo Horizonte, especially among children and in areas where the socioeconomic conditions are less favorable.

Clinical and serological evidence of Toxocara infection in school children from Morrope District, Lambayeque, Peru

The aim of this study was to estimate the frequency of human toxocariosis in a child population from Morrope district, Lambayeque, Peru. From October to December 2005, 182 school children (96 male and 86 female) were studied. Blood samples were collected for Toxocara ELISA-IgG test and hematological examination. Additionally, stool samples were collected for coproparasitological examination to check cross reactions. We found frequency of positives in 32.4% (59/182) with a significant higher proportion of positivity in male children (p < 0.00001). 71.2% of the children with positive serology (52 male and seven female), were between five and 10 years old, 77.96% had respiratory symptoms, 61.02% had ocular manifestations, 38.98% had hepatic symptoms, 38.98% had mild or moderate eosinophilia, signs statistically associated with seropositivity. 83.5% of studied population had some intestinal parasite, such as: Blastocystis hominis (53.3%), Giardia lamblia (31.3%), Entamoeba coli (29.1%), Entamoeba histolytica/E. dispar (1.1%), Hymenolepis nana (5.49%), and Ascaris lumbricoides (3.3%), but they had not any association with serology results. The ownership of dogs or/and cats were significantly associated with seropositivity to anti-Toxocara antibodies although the presence of such pets within the house was not. In conclusion, clinical and serological evidence of Toxocara infection exists in the studied population.

Prevalence of intestinal parasites in a population in south of Tehran, Iran

The aim of this study was to describe epidemiologic characteristics of intestinal parasites in a population in south of Tehran, Iran. A retrospective cross-sectional study of patients with suspicious intestinal parasitic infections referred to the Zakaria Razi Laboratory in Shahre-Ray, southern Tehran, Iran, was conducted from April 21, 2004 to October 20, 2005. All stool samples were examined and socio-demographic informations were retrieved. Of 4,371 referred patients, 466 (239 males and 227 females) were laboratory diagnosed with intestinal parasites, with a period prevalence of 10.7%. Blastocystis hominis (B. hominis) and Giardia lamblia (G. lamblia) were the most frequent intestinal parasites. More than half of patients aged ³ 18 years had a low level of educational attainment (e.g. illiterate, primary school, high school) (170/331, 54.1%). Further, majority of patients were homemakers (42.3%, 140/331) or workers (28.1%, 93/331) employed in various business settings such as food industry and construction. Findings of this study showed that intestinal parasitic infections are still a major public health challenge in Iran that needs to be addressed. We believe that public education, improving sanitation conditions of underdeveloped areas/communities, community involvement, and supporting evidence-based practice/programs are the major keys to success in preventing the spread of intestinal parasitic infections in Iran.