CROSS SECTIONAL STUDY ON THE PREVALENCE OF INTESTINAL PARASITIC INFECTIONS AMONG DISPLACED PERSONS IN YEMEN

Abstract

Background: Intestinal parasitic infections (IPIs) are considered major health concerns in developing countries especially among economically disadvantaged communities. Currently, there is a lack of information on the prevalence of IPIs among internally displaced persons in Yemen.
 Objectives: To determine the prevalence of IPIs among internally displaced person in Saber camp, Lahaj governorate, Yemen during May- November 2019.
 Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among internally displaced person from the Saber camp. samples of fresh stool were collected from the participants and examined by wet mount and formal-ether fecal concentration technique. Data were processed using the Statistical Package of Social Science (SPSS), version 25.0. The significant level set was p-value <0.05.
 Results: The study involved a sample of 350 participants. Overall, the study found that 156 (44.6%) of the participants were infected with at least one intestinal parasite. The most predominant parasite determined in this study was Entamoeba histolytica/dispar (24.6%) followed by Giardia lamblia (19.7%), Hymenolepis nana 7.1%, Enterobius vermicularis 0.90%, and Strongyloides.stercoralis 0.30%. The prevalence rate of parasitic infection in males was 55 (45.8%), whereas females were 101 (43.9 %). The association between intestinal parasitic infections (IPIs) and gender was found statistically insignificant (χ² = 0.118, P = 0.732, df = 1). The finding of the study showed that the prevalence rate was significantly different based on the age of respondents (χ² = 12.10 P = 0.033, df = 5) with the highest prevalence in the age group 1-9 years was 45.5%, where the lowest was 5.8 % in groups of respondents age between 40 to49 years.
 Conclusion: This study reveals an alarmingly high prevalence of IPIs (44.6 %) on IPIs infection among internally displaced person in Saber camp in Lahaj governorate, Yemen. Hence, there is a great need for improvement of sanitation and proper health education is required to reduce intestinal parasitic infection.