Abstract
Opisthorchis viverrini infection is a serious public health problem in Southeast Asia especially in the northeast and north of Thailand. Therefore, a cross-sectional survey using multistage sampling was conducted from the rural communities of Surin province, Thailand, during September 2013 to July 2014. O. viverrini infection was determined using Kato's thick smear technique. Socio-demographic, information resources, and history data were collected using predesigned semi-structured questionnaires. A total of 510 participants completed interviews and had stools collected. Some 32 (6.47%) participants were infected with O. viverrini. The rate was slightly higher in males (6.61%) than females (6.32%). High frequencies were found in the age groups 61-70 (19.4%) and 71-80 years (19.4%), those involved in agriculture (10.5%), and in primary school (10.3%). The distribution of high infection was found in Tha Tum (16.7%) and Sankha district (16.7%), followed by Samrong Thap (13.3%), Si Narong (13.33%), and Buachet district (13.33%). Chi-square testing indicated that age (61-70 and 71-80 year old), education (primary school) and occupation (agriculture), were significantly associated with O. viverrini infection (p-value<0.05). Of 72.6% participants who had past histories with stool examination, 17.0% of them had been infected with O. viverrini and 43.2% treated with praziquantel. This finding confirmed that O. viverrini is still a problem in Surin province, Thailand, and therefore, interventions are urgently required for mass treatment and health education implementation.
Highlights
Opisthorchis viverrini, carcinogenic liver fluke, is an endemic in the Lower Mekong Basin, including Thailand, Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR), Cambodia and central Vietnam (Sripa et al, 2010)
2000, the national prevalence of O. viverrini infection had fallen from 63.6% to 9.6% but the high prevalence rate is still found in the rural communities of provinces, Northeast (Sithithaworn et al, 2012)
Opisthorchiasis caused by O. viverrini, is of considerable public health importance in Southeast Asia, in Lao PDR and Thailand (Sripa et al, 2010)
Summary
Opisthorchis viverrini, carcinogenic liver fluke, is an endemic in the Lower Mekong Basin, including Thailand, Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR), Cambodia and central Vietnam (Sripa et al, 2010). The under-estimate of infections are considered, more than 10 million people are infected with O. viverrini in Thailand and Lao PDR (Sripa et al, 2010; Sithithaworn et al, 2012). In Thailand, it is estimated that 6 million people are infected with the O. viverrini (Sithithaworn et al, 2012). This figure indicated that it is a serious public health problem in Thailand, in northeastern and northern region (Kaewpitoon et al, 2008; Sripa et al, 2010; Sithithaworn et al, 2012). The O.viverrini infection in Thailand was the first reported in 1955 (Sadun) and many strategies has been operated over period 1955-
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