title: Determination of fecal occult blood in primary schoolchildren infected with Trichuris trichiura.
abstract: A correlation of Trichuris trichiura infection and fecal occult blood detection was conducted in 146 primary schoolchildren in Narathiwat Province, Thailand. The Kato-Katz thick smear method was used for determining egg counts and stated as eggs per gram of feces (epg). The number of T. trichiura eggs was categorized as class I (1-499 epg), class 11 (500-4,999 epg), and class III (> 5,000 epg), according to the relation between infection intensity and reduced hemoglobin concentration. Each fecal sample was processed to detect occult blood using a guaiac-based test (Hema-Screen, USA) and an immunochromatographic-based test (HEXAGON OBTI test, Germany). There were 50 schoolchildren without parasitic infection in the control group. Of 96 cases with T. trichiura infection, 85 and 11 children were classified in the class I and class II groups, respectively, but no subjects were in the class III group. Positive occult blood detection results in the control, class I, and class II groups using the guaiac and the immunochemical tests were 0, 3.5, and 9.1% (p=0.19), and 0, 2.4, and 36.4%, (p<0.0001) respectively. This study suggests that T. trichiura infection with an intensity of 500 epg or greater may be associated with intestinal bleeding.
authors.affiliation: Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine at Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand. sidwn@mahidol.ac.th
authors.forename: Darawan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Wanachiwanawin
authors.forename: Sirichit
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wongkamchai
authors.forename: Sumart
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Loymek
authors.forename: Surasak
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Suvuttho
authors.forename: Nantiya
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Monkon
authors.forename: Pisit
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Chinabutra
authors.forename: Praphatip
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Eamsobhana
authors.forename: Suthipol
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Udompunturak
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002648:Child; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005243:Feces; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007422:Intestines / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D009780:Occult Blood; D010270:Parasite Egg Count; D013785:Thailand; D014257:Trichuriasis / Q000097:blood / Q000503:physiopathology*