Prevalence Of Intestinal Parasites Among The Local People In Lum Pra Due Village, Nakornratchasrima, Thailand Without Previous History Of Antihelminthic Drug Distribution

摘要

A survey of prevalence of intestinal parasites among the local population of Lum Pra Due village in the Nakorn Ratchasrima province was performed during the year of 2000. The setting is a community in the endemic area of trematode infection without the recent previous history of antihelminthic drug distribution. Stool examination from 153 villagers (63 males and 90 females) was performed. The infection rate was 68 % (104 cases). The rate of infection in male (72 %) was higher than in female (62 %). Most of the infected cases (88 %) were in the age group 41 - 60 years. Single Opisthorchis viverrini infection was found in 7 cases. Combined infection of Opisthorchis viverrini with other non-fluke intestinal parasite was found in 44 cases. Combined infection of minute intestinal fluke with other non-fluke intestinal parasite was found in 85 cases. There were also 5 infected cases, but without fluke, with non-fluke parasite. Therefore, trematode infection is still a major health problem for this community. Introduction People in rural areas of Thailand have difficulty accessing good health care and basic health education. Subsequently, some preventable diseases such as parasitic infections are still prevalent in many remote areas of Thailand 1,2,3,4. Among pathogenic parasitic infections in northeastern region of Thailand, liver flue infection is disease with the highest prevalence. The Ministry of Public Health has set a number of control programs since 1984. However, the coverage of these programs to the far rural area is limited. Here, we report a survey of prevalence of intestinal parasites among the local population of Lum Pra Due village in the Nakorn Ratchasrima province. The setting is a community in the endemic area of trematode infection without the recent previous history of antihelminthic drug distribution. Stool examinations were performed as indicators of the basic health status of the people in this rural area. Materials And Methods Study area and participantsAll 153 villagers living in Lum Pra Due village, Huay Thalaeng District, Nakorn Ratchasrima province, were recruited into the study. The study area is the endemic area of parasitic diseases, especially the fluke diseases. Its location is about 300 km from Bangkok, capital of Thailand. This survey was performed during May 2000. In cooperation with local health workers, we dealt directly with the community leaders who assisted us in maximizing community participation and compliance. The people in this area were willing to participate in the study. Verbal informed consent was obtained from each individual before the study.Stool examinationsStool specimens were obtained from all participants and examined for the presence of intestinal parasite eggs or larvae as previously described (Triteeraprapab et al, 1997; Triteeraprapab et al, 1998; Triteeraprapab et al, 1999). About ten grams of each stool specimen were collected. Stool examination was performed microscopically using a direct smear technique at the camp by the medical technologists. The rest of samples were fixed in formalin before further processed by using a formalin-ether concentration technique, and then examined under microscope at the Veterinarian Parasitology Laboratory, Faculty of Veterinarian Science, Chulalongkorn University for confirmed of diagnosis. Data analysis All data were statistically analysed by the Microsoft Excel 6.0 programs. Results Characteristics of study populationCartons were provided to 153 individuals residing in Lum Pra Due village, Huay Thalaeng District, Nakorn Ratchasrima Province, at the time of our visit. All individuals returned their stool samples the next day. Of the 153 individuals examined for intestinal parasites, 63 were males and 90 were females. The demographic data of all subjects were presented in Table 1.