title: Soil-Transmitted Helminthiasis and Schistosomiasis in Children of Poor Families in Leyte, Philippines: Lessons for Disease Prevention and Control.
abstract: Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) continue to be a public health problem in the Philippines. We assessed the association of soil-transmitted helminthiasis (STH) and schistosomiasis with selected health-related and socioeconomic variables in four villages in Leyte, Philippines.
  
  
  
  Stool specimens from 418 adults and 533 of their children from 209 families were examined through the Kato-Katz technique.
  
  
  
  STH and schistosomiasis were present in 64.6% and 12.5%, respectively, of study participants. Analysis through the generalized linear mixed model revealed a number of associations between infection in parents and their children. Findings indicate that years of disease prevention and control efforts in these areas have been unable to bring down prevalence in children and their parents. Eliminating NTDs as public health problems will require a systems thinking approach beyond implementation of vertical control programs alone.
authors.affiliation: Ateneo Center for Health Evidence, Action, and Leadership (A-HEALS), Ateneo de Manila University, Ortigas Campus, 1605 Pasig City, Metro Manila, Philippines.|Ateneo School of Medicine and Public Health, Ateneo de Manila University, Ortigas Campus, 1605 Pasig City, Metro Manila, Philippines.
authors.forename: Harvy Joy
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Liwanag
authors.affiliation: Ateneo Center for Health Evidence, Action, and Leadership (A-HEALS), Ateneo de Manila University, Ortigas Campus, 1605 Pasig City, Metro Manila, Philippines.
authors.forename: Jhanna
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Uy
authors.affiliation: Department of Mathematics, School of Science and Engineering, Ateneo de Manila University, Loyola Heights Campus, 1108 Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines.
authors.forename: Ramil
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bataller
authors.affiliation: Ateneo Center for Health Evidence, Action, and Leadership (A-HEALS), Ateneo de Manila University, Ortigas Campus, 1605 Pasig City, Metro Manila, Philippines.
authors.forename: Janis Ruth
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Gatchalian
authors.affiliation: Schistosomiasis Research and Training Center, Department of Health Regional Office 8, 6501 Palo, Leyte, Philippines.
authors.forename: Betty
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: De La Calzada
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, The Medical City, Ortigas Avenue, 1605 Pasig City, Metro Manila, Philippines.
authors.forename: Justine Alessandra
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Uy
authors.affiliation: Ateneo Center for Health Evidence, Action, and Leadership (A-HEALS), Ateneo de Manila University, Ortigas Campus, 1605 Pasig City, Metro Manila, Philippines.|Ateneo School of Medicine and Public Health, Ateneo de Manila University, Ortigas Campus, 1605 Pasig City, Metro Manila, Philippines.
authors.forename: Manuel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dayrit
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005243:Feces / Q000469:parasitology*; D005260:Female; D006373:Helminthiasis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D058069:Neglected Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D010679:Philippines / Q000453:epidemiology; D011203:Poverty; D015995:Prevalence; D011634:Public Health; D012552:Schistosomiasis / Q000517:prevention & control*; D012574:Schools; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D012987:Soil / Q000469:parasitology
chemical_list: D012987:Soil
keywords: : helminthiasis; Philippines; neglected diseases; poverty; public health; schistosomiasis