Gastrointestinal Helminth Infections among Primary School Children in Ugbowo Metropolis Benin City.

Abstract

Helminthic infections are among the most common and neglected infections worldwide. The prevalence of common helminthes in primary school children in Ugbowo metropolis, Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria was studied. Faecal samples were collected from 312 pupils aged 5 to 13 years. This comprised of at least 40 pupils from each of the 6 elementary grades. The freshly voided stool specimen was examined macroscopically with the naked eyes for appearance, color, and the presence of blood. This was followed by microscopic examination of samples through wet preparations and concentration techniques. The predominant parasite Ascaris lumbricoides, was found in 40 samples (12.8%). The highest prevalence of intestinal helminth infection was observed in ages 11 to 13 years to be 21(20.59%) while the least prevalence was observed in ages 5 to 7 years to be 6 (14.29%). Males had the highest prevalence of helminth infections 25 (16.23%), including some mixed infections, and compared to the females which recorded 19 (12.03%) prevalence rate. Investigation of intestinal
parasitic infections should not be limited to children alone but also extend to their parents and other communities within the local government area for effective planning geared towards the control of these parasites. Therefore, while treating children infected by intestinal parasites, it is advisable to use broad spectrum or multi agent drug combinations because of multiple parasitism susceptibility in children.