title: Malaria and helminth co-infection and nutritional status of febrile patients in Southern Ethiopia.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Because the mechanisms by which Plasmodium and helminth parasites affect nutritional status are different, these parasites likely have additive effects when they co-exist in a host. This study aimed to compare the prevalence of undernutrition in patients infected with either Plasmodium or helminths and those co-infected with the two types of parasites.
  
  
  METHODS
  Acute febrile patients suspected of having malaria who attended the outpatient clinic at Dore Bafeno Health Center between December 2010 and February 2011 were examined for Plasmodium parasites using Giemsa-stained thick and thin blood smears and for helminths using the thick Kato-Katz method. Nutritional status was determined using anthropometric indices generated from height and weight measurements.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of the 702 patients examined, 34.5% were infected with helminths alone, 12.3% were infected with Plasmodium alone, and 19.4% co-infected with Plasmodium and intestinal helminths. Out of the patients examined, 44.9% were undernourished. The prevalence of undernutrition was not significantly different between those patients not infected with Plasmodium or helminth species and those infected with Plasmodium or helminth species. The differences in the odds of undernutrition were also not significant between patients who were co-infected with different Plasmodium and helminth species and those with single infections with Plasmodium or helminth species in our multivariable logistic regression model adjusted for the confounding effects of age and sex.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The prevalence of undernutrition was comparable in patients infected with Plasmodium or helminths alone and those co-infected with Plasmodium and helminths in Dore Bafeno Health Center, Southern Ethiopia. However, further studies are needed in areas of intense transmission where both parasites are endemic to elucidate whether the impact of Plasmodium and helminth co-infection on undernutrition is additive or multiplicative.
authors.affiliation: Aklilu Lemma Institute of Pathobiology, Addis Ababa University, P.O. Box 1176, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Electronic address: abrahamdegarege@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Abraham
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Degarege
authors.affiliation: Aklilu Lemma Institute of Pathobiology, Addis Ababa University, P.O. Box 1176, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Electronic address: animut2004@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Abebe
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Animut
authors.affiliation: Aklilu Lemma Institute of Pathobiology, Addis Ababa University, P.O. Box 1176, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Electronic address: dlegessem@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Mengistu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Legesse
authors.affiliation: Aklilu Lemma Institute of Pathobiology, Addis Ababa University, P.O. Box 1176, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Electronic address: gtmedhin@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Girmay
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Medhin
authors.affiliation: Aklilu Lemma Institute of Pathobiology, Addis Ababa University, P.O. Box 1176, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Electronic address: berhanu.erko@aau.edu.et.
authors.forename: Berhanu
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Erko
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000818:Animals; D000886:Anthropometry; D001769:Blood / Q000469:parasitology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D060085:Coinfection / Q000453:epidemiology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005002:Ethiopia / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D005334:Fever / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D006373:Helminthiasis / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology; D006376:Helminths / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008288:Malaria / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008853:Microscopy; D008875:Middle Aged; D009752:Nutritional Status; D010961:Plasmodium / Q000302:isolation & purification; D015995:Prevalence; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Co-infection; Helminth; Plasmodium; Southern Ethiopia; Undernutrition