title: Comparable seropositivity for ascariasis and toxocariasis in tropical slum children.
abstract: The seropositivities for infection by Ascaris lumbricoides and Toxocara canis were determined in children (1-15 years old) of a slum area of Caracas, Venezuela, and the levels that indicate the presence of active infection were defined. In children aged from 1 to 3 years, approximately 10% were positive for either parasite, and this figure increased to about 30% in 4- to 6-year-olds. For toxocariasis, the percentage of positivity remained at this level up to the age of 15 years. Whilst the positivity in children 10-15 years of age was comparable for Ascaris and Toxocara, a peak of positivity (50%) was found for Ascaris at 7-9 years of age. These results indicate that for these urban slum children, infection by Toxocara is essentially as common as that by Ascaris and, thus, that toxocariasis represents a potential public health problem in the tropical environment that is largely overlooked.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Biomedicina, Universidad Central de Venezuela, Caracas.
authors.forename: N R
authors.initials: NR
authors.lastname: Lynch
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Hagel
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Vargas
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rotundo
authors.forename: M C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Varela
authors.forename: M C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Di Prisco
authors.forename: A N
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Hodgen
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000818:Animals; D000909:Antibodies, Helminth / Q000097:blood*; D001196:Ascariasis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D011204:Poverty Areas; D015995:Prevalence; D014120:Toxocariasis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D014505:Urban Population; D014687:Venezuela / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D000909:Antibodies, Helminth