Peletu BJ, Ofoezie IE, Olaniyan RF
Background: Schistosomiasis is a snail-borne, water-based parasitic infection caused by blood-dwelling (hence called blood-fluke) trematode worms of the genus Schistosoma. It is a disease of the poor and marginalized. Schistosomiasis remains an important public health problem globally with approximately 779 million estimated to be at risk. This study was carried out to ascertain the prevalence of the disease among school children in the three communities: Owena, Kajola and Baiken with a view to providing important parasitological information and boosting can sustainable control strategies of the disease.
Methods: A school based cross-sectional technique was used to collect data on risk factors from 624 school children in March 2014 and 591 in April 2015. Urine samples were collected between the hours of 10:00 am 12:00 pm GMT in dry labeled wide mouthed. Plastic urine container (300-500 ml) each 10 ml was centrifuged and examined for the presence or absence of more nutobiuk eggs. Using X40 objectives of a light microscope. Infection intensity was recorded as number of eggs per 10 ml of urine sample. The intensity of infection was graded as heavy 500 eggs/10 ml urine, moderate (51-499 eggs/10 ml urine) or light (50 eggs/10 ml urine). Data obtained were analyzed using version 20.0 of the Statistical Package for The Social Sciences (SPSS) for windows Software Packages (SPSS on Chicag oil, 2013).
Results: Our of the 624 pupils examined in 2014, 256 (41.0%) were positive for S. haematobium eggs in urine, while in 2015, 381 (64.5%) out of 591 were positive. Thus, there was a 23% increase in prevalence between the two genera. Individual intensity of infection varied from 1-6, 468 eggs/10 ml urine. Meaning the most heavily infected pupil in 2015 exceeded more than 68% infection in 2014. The arithmetic memory 2016 in moles was 0.65 in 2015 it was 0.09, while that of females in 2014 was 0.05 and 0.08 in 2015.
Conclusion: This study area in Owena, Kajola and Baiken communities bordering Owena Reservoir/Dam, Ondo East Local Government Area, Ondo State, Nigeria show risk communities for urinary schistosomiasis. The overall pattern of S. haematobium eggs per 10 ml urine in the three communities in the two years (March 2014 and April 2015) study shows that it was sex and age dependent. The age-group with highest prevalence is 11-15 years in 2014 and 55.4% in 2015 with range infection for males was 43.6% in 2014 and 71.86 in 2015, while that of females was 37.0% in 2014 and 57.0% in 2015. Therefore, it is recommended that all school-age children especially those in 11-15 age-group should be treated using chemotherapy method. Pipe-borne water to prevent people having contact with the infected fresh water, sewage disposal facilities provided, mass educational therapy (societal sensitization/ health education) is required to reduce infection and transmission of urinary schistosomiasis.
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