title: [Enteroparasite determination in Lactuca sativa from farms dedicated to its production in Pasto, Colombia].
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Currently, vegetables like lettuce are widely recommended as part of the daily diet given their high nutritional value; however, while consumers feel attracted to the benefits provided by the vegetable, they may also be exposed to parasitic intestinal infections.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To determine the presence or absence of enteroparasites in lettuce (Lactuca sativa) grown in the rural area in the municipality of Pasto, and to analyze associated factors based on the characterization of the lands.
  
  
  METHODS
  We conducted a descriptive double blind cross-sectional study. We took a total of 105 samples from 21 properties from June to December, 2013, and we processed them by sedimentation and flotation tests. Additionally, the owners were surveyed in order to obtain information about the possible variables influencing the occurrence of enteroparasites.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We detected contamination in 100% of the lettuce samples and we found parasite eggs and larvae as follows: 95.25% with Entamoeba spp. cysts; 71.43% with Isospora spp. oocysts; 61.90% with Strongyloides stercoralis larvae (L3); 28.57% with Toxocara spp. eggs, and 4.76% with Eimeria spp. oocysts. Using the chi-square test we found association between Entamoeba spp. and ditches (p=0.008), dogs (p=0.008) and septic tanks (p=0.029); between Isospora spp. and compost (p=0.0001), dogs (p=0.0001) and slugs (p=0.002); between S. stercoralis and handling (p=0.003), and between Toxocara spp. and no use of biodigesters (p= 0.002).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We found contamination with enteroparasites in lettuce samples from growing areas in the municipality of Pasto with animal and human sources as their main reservoirs, although others were present in the environment.
authors.affiliation: Grupo de Investigación de Medicina Interna y Farmacología Veterinaria, Universidad de Nariño, Pasto, Colombia. neriazurro@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Giovanni Andrés
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Polo
authors.forename: Carmenza Janneth
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Benavides
authors.forename: Juan Manuel
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Astaiza
authors.forename: Dario Antonio
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Vallejo
authors.forename: Patricia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Betancourt
mesh_terms: D000531:Altitude; D000818:Animals; D003105:Colombia; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D000072480:Farms; D016266:Food Parasitology; D006813:Humidity; D007814:Larva; D018545:Lactuca / Q000469:parasitology*; D010063:Ovum; D010271:Parasites / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D013696:Temperature
keywords: Lettuce; agricultural cultivation; food contamination; parasites; reservoirs.; vegetables