Open J Public Health | Volume 2, Issue 2 | Research Article | Open Access
Yamssi Cedric1*, Noumedem Anangmo Christelle Nadia2, Calvin Bisong Ebai3, Flore Nguemaim Ngoufo1, Gerald Ngo Teke1, Joyceline Dulafe3, Tangwah Louisa Bihnyuy3, Vincent Khan Payne4 and Helen Kuokuo Kimbi1
1Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Bamenda, Cameroon 2Department of Microbiology, Hematology and Immunology, University of Dschang, Cameroon 3Department of Medical Laboratory Science, University of Bamenda, Cameroon 4Department of Animal Biology, University of Dschang, Cameroon
*Correspondance to: Yamssi Cedric
Fulltext PDFBackground: Parasitic infections remain a major public health problem worldwide, particularly in developing countries. The present study was aimed at determining the prevalence and risk factors associated with geohelminths in persons living in Ntamuchie community. Methods: A cross sectional study was carried out in the months of May and June, 2020 on 100 inhabitants of the Ntamuchie community. A questionnaire was administered to people who accepted to sign the consent form. The formalin-ether concentration technique was used to concentrate the parasites for identification under the microscope. Result: From a total of 100 stool samples analyzed 35 were infected with at least one species of parasitic geohelminths (35.0%) and 65 (65.0%) of the stool samples were negative. Five different helminths were seen, and the most frequently observed were Hookworm and Ascaris species, showing a prevalence of 17% each. The age group 0 to 14 years had the highest prevalence (19%) of helminthic infections while the Age group ≥ 15 years had a prevalence of 14%. Those who accomplished just the primary level of education had the highest occurrence of helminthic infections with a prevalence of 20%, followed by those of secondary education with a prevalence of 10% and lastly those of tertiary education 5%. Respondents who used pit toilets had the highest occurrence of geohelminths with a prevalence of 31% while those using the water system demonstrated a prevalence of 4%. Conclusion: This study shows that the community of Ntamuchie is highly infected with geohelminthic parasites. Improvement of sanitation, health education to promote awareness about health and hygiene together with periodic mass deworming are advocated as better strategies to control these infections.
Helminths; Ntamuchie; Hookworms; Prevalence; Mezam
Cedric Y, Christelle Nadia NA, Ebai CB, Ngoufo FN, Teke GN, Dulafe J. Prevalence and Risk Factors of Geohelminths in Ntamuchie, Mezam Division, North West Region, Cameroon. Open J Public Health. 2020;2(2):1015..