Abstract
.Microscopic examination of stool samples has been considered to be the “gold standard” for diagnosis of intestinal parasites. Recently, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) has been approved by the World Health Organization as the method of choice for the diagnosis of Entamoeba histolytica. Of the 106 stool samples collected from the Esmeraldas and Pichincha provinces of Ecuador, all (100%) were positive for E. histolytica/Entamoeba dispar by light microscopy, whereas using real-time PCR (RT-PCR) DNA amplification, 74 (69.8%) were positive for E. dispar and only three (2.8%) were positive for E. histolytica. Some 29 (27.4%) samples were negative for the presence of either E. histolytica or E. dispar, this may be due the presence of Entamoeba mosksvskii, which is morphologically identical to E. histolytica/E. dispar and not specifically targeted by the RT-PCR used. These results indicate the necessity of reevaluating the epidemiology of amebiasis in Ecuador as the prominent species found are nonpathogenic.
Highlights
The diagnosis of intestinal amebiasis is based on the microscopic examination of stool samples in search of cyst and/ or the trophozoite stages of the parasite
Of the 106 stool samples collected from the Esmeraldas and Pichincha provinces of Ecuador, all (100%) were positive for E. histolytica/Entamoeba dispar by light microscopy, whereas using real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) (RT-PCR) DNA amplification, 74 (69.8%) were positive for E. dispar and only three (2.8%) were positive for E. histolytica
Some 29 (27.4%) samples were negative for the presence of either E. histolytica or E. dispar, this may be due the presence of Entamoeba mosksvskii, which is morphologically identical to E. histolytica/ E. dispar and not targeted by the RT-PCR used
Summary
The diagnosis of intestinal amebiasis is based on the microscopic examination of stool samples in search of cyst and/ or the trophozoite stages of the parasite. Microscopic examination of stool samples has been considered to be the “gold standard” for diagnosis of intestinal parasites. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) has been approved by the World Health Organization as the method of choice for the diagnosis of Entamoeba histolytica.
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