An epidemiological study on canine intestinal parasites was undertaken to evaluate changes in the prevalence among private household dogs from the Hachinohe region of Aomori prefecture, Japan, in 1997, 2002 and 2007, using the formalin-ethyl acetate sedimentation technique. The risk of zoonotic transmission from household dogs to humans was also discussed. All intestinal parasites detected in the present study (Giardia intestinalis, Isospora spp., Toxocara canis, Ancylostoma caninum, Trichuris vulpis and Strongyloides stercoralis) showed no changes in prevalence over the past 10 years based on analysis considering canine epidemiological profiles. In particular, prevalence of Giardia intestinalis in dogs under 1 year old, derived from pet shops/breeding kennels and kept indoors was unchanged, remaining at a high level of >15.0% at each time point. Toxocara canis also showed no changes in the group of dogs under 1 year old, bred by private owners and kept outdoors, and the prevalence was >10.0% every year. The present results indicate that the prevalence of Giardia intestinalis and other intestinal parasites in private household dogs has not always decreased, and the potential for direct parasitic zoonotic transmission from dogs to humans may be relatively high level, than from the environment (indoors and outdoors). We recommend careful surveillance of intestinal parasites and aggressive use of anthelminthic in private household dogs under considering the epidemiological factors.
Animal Husbandry ; Animals ; Anthelmintics/*therapeutic use ; Dog Diseases/drug therapy/epidemiology/*parasitology ; Dogs ; Giardia lamblia/*isolation & purification ; Humans ; Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic/drug therapy/epidemiology/parasitology/*veterinary ; Japan/epidemiology ; Parasitic Diseases, Animal/drug therapy/epidemiology/*parasitology ; Prevalence ; Time Factors ; Zoonoses

The prevalence of liver and intestinal fluke infections was surveyed on residents of Savannakhet Province, Laos. Fecal specimens were collected from a total of 981 residents in 4 Mekong riverside villages and examined by the Kato-Katz thick smear technique. The results revealed that the overall helminth egg positive rate was 84.2%, and the positive rate for small trematode eggs, including Opisthorchis viverrini, heterophyids, or lecithodendriids, was 67.1%. To obtain adult flukes, 38 small trematode egg positive cases were treated with a 20-30 mg/kg single dose of praziquantel and purged. Diarrheic stools were then collected from 29 people and searched for helminth parasites using stereomicroscopes. Mixed infections with O. viverrini and 6 kinds of intestinal flukes were found, namely, Haplorchis taichui, Haplorchis pumilio, Haplorchis yokogawai, Prosthodendrium molenkampi, Phaneropsolus bonnei, and echinostomes. The total number of flukes collected was 7,693 specimens (av. no. per treated person; 265.3). The most common species was O. viverrini, followed by H. taichui, P. molenkampi, echinostomes, H. pumilio, P. bonnei, and H. yokogawai. The results indicate that foodborne liver and intestinal fluke infections are prevalent among residents of Savannakhet Province, Laos.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Animals ; Anthelmintics/administration & dosage ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Feces/parasitology ; Female ; Humans ; Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic/drug therapy/*epidemiology ; Laos/epidemiology ; Liver Diseases, Parasitic/*epidemiology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Parasite Egg Count ; Population Surveillance ; Praziquantel/administration & dosage ; Prevalence ; Trematoda/classification/*isolation & purification ; Trematode Infections/drug therapy/*epidemiology

A 94-year-old female with end-stage renal disease presents with fever, fatigue, and hematochezia. She had previously resided in Hunan Province, China, and Myanmar, and she immigrated to Taiwan 30 years ago. Colonoscopy revealed a colonic ulcer. Biopsy of the colonic ulcer showed ulceration of the colonic mucosa, and many Paragonimus westermani-like eggs were noted. Serum IgG antibody levels showed strong reactivity with P. westermani excretory-secretory antigens by ELISA. Intestinal paragonimiasis was thus diagnosed according to the morphology of the eggs and serologic finding. After treatment with praziquantel, hematochezia resolved. The present case illustrates the extreme manifestations encountered in severe intestinal paragonimiasis.
Aged, 80 and over ; Animals ; Anthelmintics/therapeutic use ; Antibodies, Helminth/blood ; Antigens, Helminth/immunology ; Colonic Diseases/complications/drug therapy/*pathology ; Colonoscopy ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Female ; Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage/complications/drug therapy/*pathology ; Humans ; Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic/complications/drug therapy/parasitology/*pathology ; Kidney Failure, Chronic/complications ; Paragonimiasis/complications/drug therapy/parasitology/*pathology ; Paragonimus westermani/*immunology ; Praziquantel/therapeutic use ; Taiwan ; Ulcer/complications/drug therapy/*pathology

A survey was made to find the extent of intestinal parasite infection in Kampongcham, Cambodia in February 2002. A total of 251 fecal specimens were collected from Tonlebat primary school children and examined by formalin-ether sedimentation technique. The overall infection rate of intestinal parasite was 54.2% (males, 57.3%; females, 50.8%). The infection rate of intestinal helminths by the species were as follows: Ascaris lumbricoides 26.3%, Echinostoma sp. 15.6%, hookworm 6.4%, Opisthorchis sp. 4.0%, Rhabditis sp. 2.4%, and Trichuris trichiura 0.4%. The infection rate of intestinal protozoa were as follows: E. coli 7.6%, G. lamblia 3.2%, I. butschlii 3.2%, and E. histolytica 0.8%. More than two different kinds of parasites were found in 16.7% of the stool samples. All the children infected were treated with albendazole, praziquantel and metronidazole according to parasite species. The results showed that intestinal parasites are highly endemic in this area.
Age Factors ; Animals ; Antiparasitic Agents/therapeutic use ; Cambodia/epidemiology ; Child ; Feces/parasitology ; Female ; Human ; Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic/drug therapy/*epidemiology/parasitology ; Intestines/parasitology ; Male ; Parasites/isolation & purification ; Prevalence ; Schools/*statistics & numerical data

We encountered an indigenous case of intestinal capillariasis with protein-losing enteropathy in the Republic of Korea. A 37-year-old man, residing in Sacheon-si, Gyeongsangnam-do, admitted to the Gyeongsang National University Hospital (GNUH) due to long-lasting diarrhea, abdominal pain, anasarca, and weight loss. He recalled that he frequently ate raw fish, especially the common blackish goby (Acanthogobius flavimanus) and has never been abroad. Under the suspicion of protein-losing enteropathy, he received various kinds of medical examinations, and was diagnosed as intestinal capillariasis based on characteristic sectional findings of nematode worms in the biopsied small intestine. Adults, juvenile worms, and eggs were also detected in the diarrheic stools collected before and after medication. The clinical symptoms became much better after treatment with albendazole 400 mg daily for 3 days, and all findings were in normal range in laboratory examinations performed after 1 month. The present study is the 6th Korean case of intestinal capillariasis and the 3rd indigenous one in the Republic of Korea.
Adult ; Albendazole/administration & dosage ; Animals ; Anthelmintics/administration & dosage ; Biopsy ; Capillaria/cytology/drug effects/*isolation & purification ; Diarrhea ; Enoplida Infections/drug therapy/parasitology/*pathology ; Feces/parasitology ; Female ; Helminthiasis/drug therapy/parasitology/*pathology ; Humans ; Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic/drug therapy/parasitology/*pathology ; Intestines/parasitology/pathology ; Male ; Protein-Losing Enteropathies/drug therapy/parasitology/*pathology ; Republic of Korea ; Treatment Outcome

Research on micro-level assessment of the changes of socio-economic status following health interventions is very scarce. The use of household asset data to determine wealth indices is a common procedure for estimating socio-economic position in resource poor settings. In such settings information about income is usually lacking, and the collection of individual consumption or expenditure data would require in-depth interviews, posing a considerable risk of bias. In this study, we determined the socio-economic status of 213 households in a community population in an island in the north-western Tanzania before and 3 year after implementation of a participatory hygiene and sanitation transformation (PHAST) intervention to control schistosomiasis and intestinal worm infections. We constructed a household 'wealth index' based housing construction features (e.g., type of roof, walls, and floor) and durable assets ownership (e.g., bicycle, radio, etc.). We employed principal components analysis and classified households into wealth quintiles. The study revealed that asset variables with positive factor scores were associated with higher socio-economic status, whereas asset variables with negative factor scores were associated with lower socio-economic status. Overall, households which were rated as the poorest and very poor were on the decrease, whereas those rated as poor, less poor, and the least poor were on the increase after PHAST intervention. This decrease/increase was significant. The median shifted from -0.4376677 to 0.5001073, and the mean from -0.2605787 (SD; 2.005688) to 0.2605787 (SD; 1.831199). The difference in socio-economic status of the people between the 2 phases was highly statistically significant (P<0.001). We argue that finding of this study should be treated with caution as there were other interventions to control schistosomiasis and intestinal worm infections which were running concurrently on Kome Island apart from PHAST intervention.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Animals ; Communicable Disease Control/*methods ; Endemic Diseases/*prevention & control ; Family Characteristics ; Female ; Helminthiasis/drug therapy/*epidemiology/*prevention & control ; Humans ; Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic/drug therapy/*epidemiology/*prevention & control ; Islands ; Lakes ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Schistosomiasis/drug therapy/*epidemiology/*prevention & control ; Social Class ; Tanzania/epidemiology ; Treatment Outcome ; Young Adult

Integrated control strategies are important for sustainable control of schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminthiasis, despite their challenges for their effective implementation. With the support of Good Neighbors International in collaboration with National Institute of Medical Research, Mwanza, Tanzania, integrated control applying mass drug administration (MDA), health education using PHAST, and improved safe water supply has been implemented on Kome Island over 5 years for controlling schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminths (STHs). Baseline surveys for schistosomiasis and STHs was conducted before implementation of any integrated control strategies, followed by 4 cross-sectional follow-up surveys on randomly selected samples of schoolchildren and adults in 10 primary schools and 8 villages, respectively, on Kome islands. Those follow-up surveys were conducted for impact evaluation after introduction of control strategies interventions in the study area. Five rounds of MDA have been implemented from 2009 along with PHAST and improved water supply with pumped wells as other control strategies for complementing MDA. A remarkable steady decline of schistosomiasis and STHs was observed from 2009 to 2012 with significant trends in their prevalence decline, and thereafter infection rate has remained at a low sustainable control. By the third follow-up survey in 2012, Schistosoma mansoni infection prevalence was reduced by 90.5% and hookworm by 93.3% among schoolchildren while in adults the corresponding reduction was 83.2% and 56.9%, respectively. Integrated control strategies have successfully reduced S. mansoni and STH infection status to a lower level. This study further suggests that monitoring and evaluation is a crucial component of any large-scale STH and schistosomiasis intervention.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Animals ; Anthelmintics/*administration & dosage ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Communicable Disease Control/*organization & administration ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Helminthiasis/*diagnosis/*drug therapy ; Humans ; Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic/*diagnosis/*drug therapy ; Islands ; Lakes ; Male ; Prevalence ; Schistosomiasis/*diagnosis/*drug therapy ; Tanzania ; Treatment Outcome

The objective of this study was to carry out a community survey on schistosomiais and soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections in order to suggest feasible and effective intervention strategies in Lake Victoria basin, Tanzania. A total of 37 communities selected from 23 districts of the 4 regions in the Lake Victoria basin of Tanzania were involved in the study. From each of the selected locality, 50 adult community members, 25 males and 25 females, were recruited for the study. Each study participant was requested to submit stool and urine specimens. From each stool specimen, duplicate Kato-Katz thick smears were prepared and microscopically examined for Schistosoma mansoni and STH eggs. Urine specimens were processed by the filtration technique and microscopically examined for Schistosoma haematobium eggs. Ultrasound examination for morbidity due to schistosomiasis was performed. Mass treatment was done using praziquantel and albendazole for schistosome and STHs infections, respectively. Out of 1,606 adults who provided stool specimens, 199 (12.4%) were positive for S. mansoni, 349 (21.7%) for hookworms, 133 (8.3%) for Ascaris lumbricoides, and 33 (2.0%) for Trichuris trichiura. Out of 1,400 participants who provided urine specimens, 25 (1.8%) were positive for S. haematobium eggs. Because of the co-endemicity of these afflictions and their impact on vulnerable population groups, the helminthiasis could be simultaneously treated with 2 drugs, praziquantel for schistosomiasis and albendazole for STHs.
Adult ; Albendazole/therapeutic use ; Animals ; Anthelmintics/therapeutic use ; Feces/parasitology ; Female ; Helminthiasis/drug therapy/*epidemiology/parasitology/*pathology ; Helminths/*classification/*isolation & purification ; Humans ; Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic/drug therapy/*epidemiology/parasitology/*pathology ; Lakes ; Male ; Microscopy ; Praziquantel/therapeutic use ; Prevalence ; Schistosomiasis/drug therapy/*epidemiology/parasitology/*pathology ; Tanzania/epidemiology ; Urine/parasitology

The objectives of this study was to conduct a survey on schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections in order to come up with feasible control strategies in Lake Victoria basin, Tanzania. Depending on the size of the school, 150-200 schoolchildren were recruited for the study. Duplicate Kato-Katz stool smears were prepared from each child and microscopically examined for Schistosoma mansoni and STHs. Urine specimens were examined for Schistosoma haematobium eggs using the filtration technique. After the survey, mass drug administration was done using praziquantel and albendazole for schistosomiasis and STHs infections, respectively. A total of 5,952 schoolchildren from 36 schools were recruited for the study and had their stool and urine specimens examined. Out of 5,952 schoolchildren, 898 (15.1%) were positive for S. mansoni, 754 (12.6%) for hookworms, 188 (3.2%) for Ascaris lumblicoides, and 5 (0.008%) for Trichuris trichiura. Out of 5,826 schoolchildren who provided urine samples, 519 (8.9%) were positive for S. haematobium eggs. The results revealed that intestinal schistosomiasis, urogenital schistosomiasis, and STH infections are highly prevalent throughought the lake basin. The high prevalence of intestinal and urogenital schistosomisiasis in the study area was a function of the distance from Lake Victoria, the former being more prevalent at localities close to the lake, whilst the latter is more so away from it. Control of schistosomiasis and STHs in the study area requires an integrated strategy that involves provision of health education to communities, regular treatments, and provision of adequate safe water supply and sanitation facilities.
Adolescent ; Albendazole/therapeutic use ; Animals ; Anthelmintics/therapeutic use ; Child ; Feces/parasitology ; Female ; Helminthiasis/drug therapy/*epidemiology/parasitology ; Helminths/*classification/*isolation & purification ; Humans ; Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic/drug therapy/*epidemiology/parasitology ; Male ; Praziquantel/therapeutic use ; Prevalence ; Schistosomiasis/drug therapy/*epidemiology/parasitology ; Schools ; Students ; Tanzania/epidemiology ; Urine/parasitology

The effects of anti-allergic drugs on intestinal mastocytosis and the expulsion of Neodiplostomum seoulense were observed in Sprague-Dawley rats, after oral infection with 500 metacercariae. The drugs used were hydroxyzine (a histamine receptor H1 blocker), cimetidine (a H2 blocker), cyclosporin-A (a helper T-cell suppressant), and prednisolone (a T- and B-cell suppressant). Infected, but untreated controls, and uninfected controls, were prepared. Worm recovery rate and intestinal mastocytosis were measured on weeks 1, 2, 3, 5, and 7 post-infection. Compared with the infected controls, worm expulsion was significantly (P < 0.05) delayed in hydroxyzine- and cimetidine-treated rats, despite mastocytosis being equally marked in the duodenum of all three groups. In the cyclosporin-A- and prednisolone-treated groups, mastocytosis was suppressed, but worm expulsion was only slightly delayed, without statistical significance. Our results suggest that binding of histamine to its receptors on intestinal smooth muscles is more important in terms of the expulsion of N. seoulense from rats than the levels of histamine alone, or mastocytosis.
Animals ; Cimetidine/pharmacology ; Cyclosporine/pharmacology ; Histamine H1 Antagonists/*pharmacology ; Histamine H2 Antagonists/*pharmacology ; Hydroxyzine/pharmacology/therapeutic use ; Immunosuppressive Agents/*pharmacology ; Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic/*drug therapy ; Mastocytosis/*drug therapy/parasitology ; Prednisolone/*pharmacology ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Support, Non-U.S. Gov't ; Trematoda/*growth & development/metabolism ; Trematode Infections/*drug therapy