Extensive multiparasitism in a village of Yunnan province, People's Republic of China, revealed by a suite of diagnostic methods.
Intestinal multiparasitism, the accuracy of different diagnostic techniques, and the influence of sampling effort were studied among 215 individuals in a Bulang village, Yunnan province, People's Republic of China. Behavioral, demographic, and socioeconomic data were obtained by questionnaire. Multiple stool specimens were examined by the Kato-Katz, Koga agar plate, Baermann, and ether-concentration methods. Eight helminth and 7 protozoa species were diagnosed. The prevalence of each of the 3 main soil-transmitted helminths (Ascaris lumbricoides, hookworm, and Trichuris trichiura) exceeded 85%. Blastocystis hominis was the most prevalent intestinal protozoan (20.0%). Over 80% of the individuals harbored 3 or more intestinal parasites concurrently. The infection intensities were predominantly light for hookworm and T. trichiura but moderate for A. lumbricoides. Examination of 3 instead of 1 stool specimen increased the sensitivity of helminth diagnosis, most notably for hookworm. Intestinal multiparasitism is rampant in this rural part of Yunnan province and calls for control measures.
Steinmann
Peter
P
Department of Public Health and Epidemiology, Swiss Tropical Institute, Basel, Switzerland.
Du
Zun-Wei
ZW
Wang
Li-Bo
LB
Wang
Xue-Zhong
XZ
Jiang
Jin-Yong
JY
Li
Lan-Hua
LH
Marti
Hanspeter
H
Zhou
Xiao-Nong
XN
Utzinger
Jürg
J
D017677:Age Distribution; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D005243:Feces / Q000469:parasitology; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D010272:Parasitic Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D010349:Patient Compliance; D015995:Prevalence; D012424:Rural Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires