Abstract
The gastrointestinal helminth infection status of 1574 children living in a slum area of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia was assessed by quantitative coprology. Almost two-thirds were infected with Trichuris trichiura, 49 · 6% with Ascaris lumbricoides, and 5 · 3% with hookworm. Infection prevalence rose rapidly to a stable asymptote at 7 years of age, and the age-intensity profile was convex with maximal values in the 5–10 year age classes. This pattern was the same for males and females, but differed markedly between different ethnic groups. The frequency distributions of A. lumbricoides and T. trichiura were highly overdispersed ( k values were 0 · 21 and 0 · 27, respectively), and age-dependent over the 0–8 year age classes. This suggests that the force of infection with these nematodes is lower in infants than in older children.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
