The Prevalence of Entamoeba Histolytica and Giardia Lamblia in Nasiryah city: A household survey

Abstract

Background Despite the prevailing impression among many professional that parasitic infection is very common in our population, and despite the usual blame we put on parasitic infections as a cause of ill-health, yet, scientific studies to document such a problem are scanty. In Thi-Gar governorate, the situation is not exceptional. This study is an attempt to quantify the prevalence of two important parasitic infections : namely Entamoeba histolytica and Giardia lamblia in Nasiryiah city, and to describe the relationship of prevalence of these infections to selected socioeconomic variables. Methods The study is cross-sectional household survey, it was conducted during April and May of 2019.Two districts (Aledaralmahalia and Alsader town) were selected in Nasiryah city. The selection depend upon the difference in socioeconomic status, assuming that they represent the wide spectrum of socioeconomic variation in the city population, but it must be admitted that this only assumption and no more. Results There are generally many difference between the two districts.Aledaralmahalia has relatively better sanitation, people live in better housing conditions, they are moderately educated and 16% of houses are rented. Alsader town has poorer sanitation , over-crowded housing conditions and 28% of houses are rented. The prevalence rates are higher in Alsader town(E.H.15.09%,G.L.11.09%),than those in Aledaralmahalia (E.H.11.18%,G.L.10.4%). Conclusion The result of study revealed that the prevalence rates of Entamoeba histolytica and Giardia lamblia were higher in Alsader town than in Aledaralmahalia.