Disposal Of Faeces Research Articles

Effect of Positive Deviance Approach on Promotion of Safe Disposal of Child's Feces in Rural Tamil Nadu: A Community-Based Quasi-Experimental Study.

Safe disposal of feces is ensured when it is deposited into a toilet, whereas unsafe disposal of child's feces plays a crucial role in disease transmission and environmental pollution. These areas are overlooked by many sanitation promotion interventions. To determine the effect of positive deviance (PD) approach on safe disposal of child's feces among households who owned a toilet. A community-based quasi-experimental study was conducted in the four field practice villages of the Urban Health Training Center, Villupuram, for 18 months. Households who owned a toilet and had a child less than 5 years old were included. After IEC clearance, information was collected from a representative sample of 100 households before intervention and another 100 households after intervention. PD approach was applied for 6 months to promote safe disposal practices in the study villages. Data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software (version 24). The Chi-square test was used to determine the significance of difference between baseline and endline data. The effect size was calculated to estimate the magnitude of difference between baseline and endline data. Before intervention, only 3% of households disposed the feces into a toilet, while after intervention, almost 38% of households disposed in the toilet (χ2 = 37.39; df = 1; P = 0.001). The effect size (Cramer's V) was found to be 0.43. PD approach demonstrated considerable improvements in safe disposal of child's feces in rural settings. Further, to sustain the behavior change, frequent reinforcement of key messages at frequent intervals needs to be emphasized.

Does owning improved latrine facilities enhance the safe disposal of child feces in Africa? a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Improved sanitation refers to those that effectively avoid human contact with excreta in a hygienic manner. Having improved latrines is a key factor in adopting safe ways of disposing of child feces. However, previous studies in Africa that examined how owning improved latrine facilities associated with household child feces disposal practices has shown inconsistent results, and no systematic review of these findings has been done. Therefore, this study aims to synthesize the evidence on the significance of households having improved latrine facilities for safe child feces disposal practices among households with under five-year-old children in Africa. The searched databases include: PubMed/Medline, Ovid/Embase, ScienceDirect, AJOL and the Cochrane Library. In the search process, Google Scholar and references of other studies were considered. This review included studies that were published in English without any time restrictions. The outcome of this study was an estimate of the association between the ownership of an improved latrine and the disposal practices of children's feces. Two reviewers used the Excel data extraction tool to extract the relevant data from the studies that were included in the review. Using Stata version 16, a meta-analysis was performed with a random effects statistical model. The inverse index of variance (I2) was used to assess heterogeneity. Forest plots were used to show the pooled estimate with a 95% confidence interval. Publication bias was assessed using Egger's test and a funnel plot. Out of the 616 studies that were retrieved, 15 were included in the systematic review analysis and 10 were included in the meta-analysis. All studies that were included are cross-sectional studies done in Ethiopia, Nigeria, Gambia, Malawi, Eswatini, Ghana, Zambia, and a study used data from sub-Saharan Africa. Improved latrine facilities significantly enhanced the practice of safe child feces disposal, as shown by the overall effect size (OR = 2.74; 95% CI = 1.24-1.35, I2 = 99.95%). In the subgroup analysis by sample size, the presence of improved latrines significantly enhanced safe child feces disposal in studies with sample sizes less than 1000 (OR = 3.24; 95% CI = 2.86-3.62, I2 = 61.38%), while there was no significant difference in studies with sample sizes greater than 1000 (OR = 2.67; 95% CI = 0.69-4.64, I2 = 99.97%). However, studies that involved children under 5 years old indicated that improved latrine facilities significantly enhanced the practice of safe child feces disposal (OR = 4.02; 95% CI = 2.03-6.09; I2 = 99.96%). In this research study, we examined the ownership of improved latrine facilities among households with five-year-old children to enhance the disposal of child feces in a safer manner in Africa. The high heterogeneity among the studies and the cross-sectional design of the included studies limit the causal inference and generalizability of the findings. Therefore, meta-analyses of longitudinal and experimental studies are needed to confirm the causal relationship between improved latrine facilities and safe child feces disposal practices in Africa.

No Child's Play: Under-five Child Feces Management in a Rural Area of Bengaluru Urban District, India.

Inappropriate feces disposal leads to environmental contamination, and increases the risk of exposure to children. We aimed to estimate the proportion of rural households with knowledge and practice of safe management of feces (SMoF) among under-five children and to identify associated factors. A cross-sectional study was conducted in eight villages in Bengaluru Urban district over 2 months, using a face-validated semi-structured interview schedule. SMoF was defined based on five criteria - defecation site, transport tool, feces disposal, cleaning of transport tool, and hand washing. Out of 320 under-five children surveyed, 15.7% were pre-ambulatory and 84.3% were ambulatory. The majority of the caregivers (92.5%) felt that children should defecate in the latrine and only 23.7% were aware that child feces were more infectious than adult feces. SMoF was only practiced by caregivers of ambulatory children (52.6%). Households with older caregivers (P = 0.01) and those living in a pucca house (P = 0.02) with a latrine inside (P = 0.04) were found to practice SMoF. Children of households that practiced unsafe disposal of child feces experienced more diarrheal episodes (P = 0.04). Caregivers >20 years were found to have better odds of SMoF [20-25 years (adjusted odds ratio, aOR: 9.02), 26-30 years (aOR: 12.17), >30 years (aOR: 8.93)] compared to those <20 years. The proportion of households with knowledge and practice of SMoF was low. Awareness of SMoF is essential to reduce the incidence of diarrheal diseases and improve sanitation. Our findings also call for awareness building at schools and colleges.

Evaluation of psychosocial factors affecting faecal sludge desludging practice compliance in Bekasi City

Desludging operators have important role in on site sanitation to achieve safe sanitation. Desludging practice have to comply with the principles of safe sanitation and regulations to maintain the health and safety of the worker, the community, and the environment. However, the implementation of desludging sometimes does not comply with safe sanitation principle and regulation. This study aims to identify the compliance of faecal sludge desludging with regulation and safe sanitation principle. Furthermore, Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF) is applied to explore psychosocial factors of the operators that affect desludging practice. Questionnaire assessing desludging practice and psychosocial factors based on TDF was given to 32 desludging operators that works in local government and private desludging services in Bekasi City. Desludging practice in Bekasi City were not comply desludging practice procedure. From desludging procedure compliance, only 56% of the respondents claimed to have carried out the desludging practice in accordance with the procedures, low percentage also found in the worker’s safety procedure especially in wearing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) eventhough mostly do not do high risk action in emptying. Related to faecal sludge disposal procedure, high percentage (84%) of workers always discharge to Faecal Sludge Treatment Plant (FSTP), while some small amount (16%) often follow the discharge procedure. Spearman’s Rank Correlation analysis was used to determine domains in TDF that significantly affecting desludging practice compliance. From the correlation analysis, Knowledge (ρ = 0.505; P =0.003), Beliefs about consequences (ρ =0.473; P = 0.006), and Environmental context and resources (ρ =0.389; P = 0.028) are statistically significant affecting desludging practice.

Fecal Sludge Management and Sanitation Safety: An Assessment in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Sanitation safety practices and risks associated with fecal sludge management are crucial for public health and the environment. This study assessed sanitation safety practices and risks in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, at different stages of fecal sludge management. The research aimed to understand the current state of sanitation facilities, practices, and associated risks and identify areas for improvement. A mixed methods/approach was employed, utilizing household surveys, risk assessments, and sanitary inspections. A total of 384 study subjects were interviewed using face-to-face interviews and observations. The findings revealed that the majority of households (97.7%) had consistent access to toilets, with flush/pour flush toilets being the most common type (47.4%). Factors such as odors in toilets or septic tanks, open defecation by children, and the use of untreated wastewater for food production were significantly associated with sociodemographic factors. Risk assessments indicated that 67% of households fell into the low-risk category, while 33% were classified as intermediate risk. The study identified non-compliance issues during sanitary inspections at transfer stations (45%), a wastewater treatment and disposal facility (61.5%), and in the management of wastewater and sludge in the sewer line (64%). These findings call for urgent actions to address improper feces disposal, inadequate maintenance of sanitation facilities, and unsafe practices in fecal sludge management. This study identified concerning issues in fecal sludge management, including improper feces disposal, inadequate facility maintenance, and non-compliance with safety standards during emptying, transport, treatment, and disposal. Urgent action is needed to address these risks. Promoting proper disposal techniques, improving facility maintenance, education programs, strengthening regulations, providing training and protective equipment, and investing in enhanced sanitation facilities and wastewater treatment methods are essential for improving sanitation safety practices.

Status of Sanitation Workers: A Case Study of Kathmandu Valley

Sanitation refers to the provision of services for the safe disposal of urine and feces. It also refers to the maintenance of hygienic conditions through different services such as garbage collection and waste water disposal. It is necessary to provide a healthy environment for people as well as protect the natural resources. A sanitation worker is a person which responsible for cleaning and maintaining the environment through sanitation services. This study aims to explore the socio-economic status of sanitation workers and to examine their livelihood means that help their living. For this study, both quantitative and qualitative exploration approaches are applied. The observation, interview as well as case studies are applied to the study. The findings of the study concluded that sanitation occupation is a traditional job for employment and reducing poverty in the civic area but sanitation workers also have to face numerous problems and they’ve different pitfalls which are nominated as the vulnerable environment of sanitation workers. This study helps the government and non-government agencies to make programs and mitigation measures.

Geo-helminth infections: Neglected helminthiases among pregnant women attending antenatal care at Nandi-Hills Sub-County Hospital, Nandi County, Kenya

The study investigated prevalence of geo-helminth infection in pregnant women attending antenatal care at Nandi Hills Sub-County Hospital in Nandi County. Stool samples were collected from randomly selected consenting pregnant women to attain a sample size of 300. The samples were processed immediately at the hospital using formal-ether concentration technique and results recorded in terms of either presence or absence of ova. Direct smear egg count was done to quantify worm burden. Capillary blood was obtained by a finger prick for measurement of haemoglobin levels. Participants were requested to fill a questionnaire to obtain information regarding water source, mode of faecal disposal geophagy status and recent chemoprophylaxis. Geohelminth parasites detected were Ascaris lumbricoides (30%), hookworm (15%) and Trichiuris trichiura (1%). There were significant differences in co-infections with A. lumbricoides hookworm (P=0.00) and A. lumbricoides - T. trichiura parasites (P=0.007). Factors that had significant positive association with either A. lumbricoides-hookworm or A. lumbricoides -T. trichiura co-infections were use of piped water, pit latrine, being geophagous and lack of recent chemoprophylaxis.

Risk Factor of Child Diarrhea in Indonesia: A Systematic Review

Bakcground: Diarrhea is the leading cause of death among children worldwide, including in Indonesia. However, there is no scientific research on the most common risk factors for diarrhea among children in Indonesia. A systematic literature review was conducted to highlight the most predisposing risk factors of diarrhea based on the epidemiological triangle, in order to improve preventive measures by society to reduce the incidence of childhood diarrhea. Methods: A systematic review of observational studies without limitation of year of publication was performed in 2023 based on PRISMA protocol. Results: A total of 2607 studies were identified from the Pubmed database, only 9 studies were extracted and assessed using the STROBE method. The risk factors were divided into 3 categories: environmental, host and other, to follow the rule of the epidemiologic triangle of disease. The highest odds ratios were found for the factor "child defecation in open places" (OR=10.47) from the environmental category and for the factor "child eating by hand" (OR=5.6) from the host category. Lower maternal education from the host category was also influential (OR=1.52). Conclusion: Improper public disposal of child feces, child behavior of eating with hand and low maternal education are the most significant contributing risk factors of child diarrhea in Indonesia.

BabyWASH and diarrhea prevention practices following multimedia educational intervention in hard-to-reach areas of the Afar and Somali regions of Ethiopia: a mixed-method endline evaluation

BackgroundWater, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) interventions, which are specifically targeted towards young children—known as “BabyWASH”—reduce exposure to environmental contamination and prevent microbial burden in their play and feeding environments. The purpose of this endline study was to evaluate the effectiveness and potential sustainability of a multimedia educational intervention in influencing key BabyWASH and diarrhea prevention practices in four hard-to-reach woredas (i.e. administrative districts) of the Afar and Somali regions of Ethiopia.MethodsA mixed-method, comparative cross-sectional study was conducted, which included 457 household surveys, 16 key informant interviews, and 8 focus group discussions. The multimedia educational intervention comprised: broadcasting radio talk shows and radio spot messages, capacity-building training for community health workers and community leaders, community mobilization campaigns, and the distribution of promotional print media materials. Propensity score matching analysis was used to estimate the effect of the multimedia educational intervention on key BabyWASH and diarrhea prevention attitudes and practices, which was then triangulated with qualitative findings.ResultsThe multimedia intervention had a significant positive impact on good BabyWASH and diarrhea prevention practices, including appropriate practices of child feces disposal (t-test = 5.17; p < 0.001), handwashing with soap or ash (t-test = 8.85; p < 0.001), maintaining separate playgrounds for young children (t-test = 2.83; p < 0.001), washing of child’s body, hands, and faces (t-test = 15.78; p < 0.001), and food hygiene practices (t-test = 2.74; p < 0.05). The findings of the qualitative assessment also revealed that the multimedia intervention packages and the approaches used were successful in influencing key BabyWASH and diarrhea prevention behaviors in the intervention implementation woredas. In addition, providing capacity building training to local actors and community leaders and recording radio talk shows and sharing them with community members were recognized as effective intervention implementation strategies.ConclusionThe endline evaluation found that the multimedia educational intervention improved awareness, perception, and practice of BabyWASH and diarrhea prevention behaviors in intervention woredas compared to control woredas. Sanitation and hygiene promotion interventions in pastoralist settings can be effective when using locally and contextually appropriate intervention strategies. However, considerations for integrating both behavioral and structural components in WASH interventions is essential.

Physico-chemical and bacteriological assessments of shallow well water samples during the dry and rainy seasons

There is need to study the impact of seasonal variations on well water quality especially in Ado – Ekiti metropolis as this will assist in creating awareness on groundwater quality for domestic consumption. The quality of groundwater obtained during dry and rainy seasons from 60 privately utilized hand-dug closed wells in Ado Ekiti metropolis were assessed. Physicochemical and bacteriological investigations were carried out according to required standards. The temperature, colour, turbidity, pH, total solids, chlorides, sulphate, calcium, magnesium, nitrate, and iron, which are physico-chemical parameters of the well water samples ranged from 24.7 to 25.6 °C, 4.1 to 7.3 HU, 3.7 to 6.9 NTU, 7.3 to 7.5, 95.7 to 211.1 mg/L, 38.6 to 74.6 mg/L, 34.3 to 64.9 mg/L, 24.3 to 49.4 mg/L, 48.1 to 89.0 mg/L, 0.4 to 0.8 mg/L and 0.05 to 1.0 mg/L respectively. Despite the fact that the parameters were within the acceptable ranges, bacteriological studies showed the presence of E. coli (ranged from 19.5 to 81.6 CFU) throughout the seasons, thus, individuals who rely on groundwater for their health are exposed to disease-causing organisms. Deductions from the correlation matrix equally, demonstrated the relative dependence of the parameters on one another as they variate according to the change in weather. Mostly during the rainy seasons, higher concentrations of the physicochemical and bacteriological parameters were observed than during the dry seasons, proving that the rainy seasons aid anthropogenic activities from the surface to transmit dissolved harmful waste materials to the subsurface which eventually finds its paths into the groundwater. Improper disposal of faeces, faulty soak-pits, latrines, dumpsites and burial grounds are part of the factors that contribute to bacteriological pollutants in the groundwater source.

Assessing water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) practices and their association with diarrhoea in under-five children in urban Chandernagore: Community-based evidence from a small municipal corporation in Hooghly District of West Bengal, India.

The study aims to understand the relationship of childhood diarrhoea (under-five children) with water, sanitation and hygiene factors in the light of other contextual factors in an urban setting in the district of Hooghly in West Bengal, India. This primary study was carried out by SIGMA Foundation, Kolkata from 4 to 24 January 2023 across 404 households having at least one under-five child. The findings suggested that the water score was 'good' in 85.1% of the households whereas the hand hygiene score was 'good' in 14.6% of households. More than 90% of the households had piped water supply. Less than half of them treated water before consumption among which 45.3% used cloths for straining water; 59.2% of the caregivers followed safe disposal of child's faeces; 66.8% of households had no handwashing arrangement, and 30.5% had taps and wash basins for handwashing; 20.3% of the under-five children had suffered from diarrhoea in the last month before the survey and its prevalence was higher in children aged 12-23 months. Multivariate results suggested diarrhoea prevalence was lower in households that were pucca and had good water and hand hygiene scores, lower in children that had received iron fortification and whose caregivers followed safe child's stool disposal.

Determinan Kejadian Diare di Kelurahan Tangkahan, Medan Labuhan

Diarrhea is the second cause of death in children under the age of 5, which is around 760,000 cases/year. In Indonesia, diarrhea affects all age groups with the most cases occurring in children under 5 years of age, which is around 16.7%. There are several factors related to the incidence of diarrhea, namely the limited supply of clean water, water contaminated with feces, lack of sanitation facilities, unhygienic disposal of feces, poor personal and environmental hygiene, and inappropriate food preparation and storage. This study aims to determine the risk factors for diarrhea that occur in the community in Tangkahan Village, Medan Labuhan in 2022. The type of research used is quantitative with descriptive analytic methods and uses a cross sectional approach. Taking respondents with the Cluster Sampling technique as many as 210 respondents. The statistical test in analyzing the research data uses the Chi-square method. The results of this study indicate that there is a relationship between unhealthy food consumption (p-value = 0.029) and the incidence of diarrhea in Tangkahan Village in 2022.

Latrine utilization and associated factors among districts implementing and not-implementing community-led total sanitation and hygiene in East Wollega, Western Ethiopia: A comparative cross-sectional study.

Discharge of excreta to the environment lead to surface and groundwater contamination and human exposure to disease-causing micro-organisms. There is limitation of evidences regarding the latrine utilization among community-led total sanitation and hygiene implemented and non-implemented districts of the East Wollega Zone. Hence, this study aimed to determine the magnitude and associated factors of latrine utilization among households in community-led total sanitation and hygiene implemented and non-implemented Districts in East Wollega Zone, Western Ethiopia. A cross-sectional study was conducted. A Multi-stage sampling technique was applied to select the 461 households. Data were collected using interviews and observations guided by a pre-structured questionnaire. Data were entered using Epi Data and exported to SPSS software version 25 for data recording, cleaning, and statistical analysis. Bivariable logistic regression was run to identify the candidate variables at p-value <0.25. Variables that had associations with latrine utilization in the bi-variable analysis were entered together into multivariable logistic regression. An Adjusted odds ratio with a 95% confidence interval was calculated and P-value< 0.05 was used to declare a statistically significant association. The overall prevalence of latrine utilization was found to be 52.7% (95%CI:48%, 57.3%). Religion (AOR = 0.149;95%CI:0.044,0.506), education (AOR = 3.861;95%CI:1.642,9.077), occupation, absence of children <5 years (AOR = 4.724;95%CI:2.313,9.648), toilet cleaning (AOR = 10.662;95%CI:5.571,20.403), frequency of latrine construction (AOR = 6.441;95%CI:2.203,18.826), maintenance need (AOR = 6.446; 95%CI:3.023,13.744), distance from health institution (AOR = 0.987; 95%CI:0.978, 0.996), distance from kebele office (AOR = 6.478; 95%CI:2.137,19.635), and latrine distance from dwelling (AOR = 11.656; 95%CI:2.108, 64.44) were the factors associated with latrine use. The latrine utilization in this study is low as compared to other studies. Religion, education, occupation, absence of children <5 years, toilet cleaning, frequency of latrine construction, maintenance need of the toilet, distance from health institution, distance from kebele, and latrine distance from dwelling are the associated factors of latrine utilization. Both households and health workers have to work together to improve latrine utilization and the safe disposal of children's feces.

Knowledge of Families of Patients with Diarrhea Prevention in The in-Treatment Room of Academis Hospital Makassar

Based on the results of research related to diarrheal diseases in various regions in Indonesia, there are several interrelated factors, namely inadequate supply of clean water, water polluted by feces, lack of sanitation facilities, unhygienic disposal of feces, poor personal and environmental hygiene, and improper processing and storage of food. Many factors can directly or indirectly be a driving factor for the occurrence of diarrhea, consisting of host agent, environmental and behavioral factors. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between the knowledge of the patient's family and the prevention of diarrheal diseases at the Makassar Akademis Hospital. This type of research is descriptive with the research design used is the Cross-Sectional method, namely the type of research that emphasizes the time of measurement / observation of independent and dependent variable data only once. Place This research was conducted in the inpatient room of the Makassar Akademis Hospital. According to the results of data analysis using the chi-square statistical test, a value of p = 0.000 (p &lt;0.05) was obtained, this means that there is an environmental relationship with the incidence of diarrhea in toddlers in the child care room at the Makassar Akademis Hospital. The conclusion is that there is a relationship between environmental, socio-economic conditions, and mother's knowledge with the incidence of diarrhea in the child care room at the Makassar Akademis Hospital.

Risk Factors of Diarrhea in Toddlers at Andi Makkasau Hospital Parepare City

Diarrheal disease is a major problem in developing countries, including Indonesia. Aside from being a cause of death, diarrhea is also a major cause of malnutrition which can lead to death. Besides being caused by malnutrition, in terms of public health science, there are other factors related to the incidence of diarrhea. The dominant factors causing diarrhea in Indonesia are clean water, sanitation, and feces disposal facilities. This study aimed to determine the risk factors for diarrhea in toddlers at Andi Makkasau Hospital, Parepare City. Analytical survey research methods and case-control study designs. The sampling technique used purposive sampling. This study's sample was all children under five treated at Andi Makkasau Hospital, Parepare City, namely as many as 50 toddlers. The sample was divided into two groups, where 25 toddlers were in the case group (diarrhea), and 25 were in the control group (no diarrhea). Data analysis used the Odds Ratio (OR) test. The results obtained from the risk factors for diarrhea in toddlers are the availability of clean water (OR=1.263), hand washing habits (OR=1.658), food sanitation (OR=3.273), availability of healthy latrines (OR=17.250) and management garbage (OR=5,762). This study concludes that clean water, hand washing habits, food sanitation, availability of healthy latrines, and waste management are risk factors for diarrhea in toddlers at Andi Makkasau Hospital, Parepare City. Parents are expected to improve clean living behavior to prevent diarrheal disease in toddlers.

Associations between canine hookworm infection and dog owners' awareness, perception, and behaviour: A cross-sectional study in Brisbane, Queensland, 2019-2020.

Canine hookworms are found globally, and infections have been recorded in domestic dogs visiting dog parks in Queensland, Australia. Some canine hookworms also present a risk of zoonotic transmission to humans. Potential transmission of hookworms can occur in the household and at public places because of lack of owner awareness and poor coverage of canine deworming. Between April 2019 and March 2020, faecal samples from owned dogs were collected from 39 dog parks in metropolitan Brisbane, Queensland, and tested for the presence of hookworm eggs using faecal floatation technique. Dog owners who provided samples were requested to complete a survey on their awareness, perceptions and behaviour regarding the risks and consequences of canine parasitic infection. Associations between dog owner demographics and responses to the survey were measured using Goodman and Kruskal's gamma. Statistical associations between canine hookworm infection in dogs and their owner's responses were quantified using a two-sample Wilcoxon rank-sum test. A total of five canine faecal samples from 175 respondents were found positive for hookworm eggs, corresponding to a sample- and park-level prevalence of 2.86% and 12.82%, respectively. Female dog owners were found to be more aware of the importance of regular deworming of their dogs (|γ| = 0.405). Our results indicate that hookworm infection was associated with a lower awareness of the importance of deworming (p = 0.007), less diligence in administration of deworming (p = 0.004), lower awareness of the risk of acquiring parasites from raw meat (p = 0.010), less likelihood of cooking meat before feeding it to their dogs (p = 0.028), and less likelihood to properly dispose their dog's faeces (p = 0.027). This study not only indicates a need for improving owner education towards the importance of deworming but also a need for changing owner's behaviours to reduce potential environmental contamination with infective hookworms. The latter in particular indicates a broader public health risk of disease transmission in public places due to improper disposal of dog faeces, especially in areas with higher canine hookworm infections.

What was the main factor in successful control of ascariasis in Korea?

In the l950s, under the legacy of traditional agriculture, Ascaris lumbricoides, spread epidemically in the war-bitten society of Korea. Consensus on the parasite control was drafted in the Parasite Disease Prevention Act, which passed a parliamentary agreement in 1966, and established safe disposal of feces and mass chemotherapy as control strategies. Biannual stool examinations and treating infected schoolchildren were basic scheme of the control activity through which revenue could be secured for organized business. In the 27 years following 1969, a maximum of 16 million stool examinations had been done every year. Cellophane thick smear enabled the task. The infection declined remarkably in the 1970s when industrialization and green revolution proceeded. A population study of A. lumbricoides in the late 1970s helped us better understand its epidemiology. The data also settled down the understandable protest of teachers against the repeated stool examinations. In the 9 years following 1987, the target population was gradually reduced when the egg positive rate was below 0.1%. An article in the Korean Law, stipulating obligatory stool examinations, was made optional. Although the long-term Korean effort of Ascaris control was a success, the effect of mass chemotherapy was not as succinct in terms of lowering reinfection. In the period of control, Korean agricultural technology changed, and the economy grew and supplied sanitary facilities by which the vicious cycle was disconnected. Reduction of morbidity was a benefit of mass chemotherapy, which is the only control method feasible in economically difficult countries. The most important hurdle of parasite control in the 1960s was poverty of general population and limited financial resources in Korea but the society formed a consensus on the priority of intestinal helminthiasis control during the ordeal period. The national consensus in the 1960s was the critical milestone for Ascaris control in Korea. Under the social agreement, application of timely technical and research advancements in parasitology achieved the success of ascariasis elimination. The successful experience of ascariasis elimination in Korea can be a benchmark for countries where neglected tropical diseases are endemically recycled.

An Ecological Toilet System Incorporated with a Hydrothermal Liquefaction Process

The harmless disposal and resource utilization of human feces is important to the sanitation process. Hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) can convert toilet feces into bio-crude oil and reduce waste. In this study, an integrated eco-toilet system was developed by combining vacuum micro-flush toilets with a continuous hydrothermal liquefaction reactor. The system operated stably for over 10 h. This system can serve 300 households and save 2759 m3 of water per year compared to traditional flush toilets. The energy recovery from the feces was 2.87 times the energy consumed for the HTL process. The HTL bio-crude oil yield was 28 wt%, and the higher heat value (HHV) of the bio-crude was 36.1 MJ/kg. The biochemical compounds of the bio-crude oil consisted of acid ester, hydrocarbons, phenols, and a nitrogenous heterocyclic compound. The carbon in the human feces was mainly transferred to the bio-crude oil, while nitrogen was mainly transferred to the aqueous phase product. The post-HTL aqueous stream could be treated and used as fertilizer. This system achieves energy self-sufficiency, along with water and energy savings. This integrated eco-toilet effectively converts feces into bio-crude to realize waste reduction and resource utilization of human feces.

THE DIFFERENCES IN PARENTING STYLE CHARACTERISTICS OF CHILDREN UNDER FIVE IN TULUNGAGUNG AND BANGKALAN DISTRICT, EAST JAVA, INDONESIA

Background: Children's health is strongly influenced by the parenting style. Good parenting will affect children's optimal growth and development such as having better nutritional status and less morbidity. Balanced nutrition is needed to achieve the optimal growth and development of children starting from newborns. East Java is one of Indonesia’s provinces with the highest stunting prevalence in children under five. However, few studies focused on the parenting style differences in areas with the highest and lowest prevalence of stunting.Objectives: The aim of this study was to describe and compare the characteristics of parenting styles of children under five in Tulungagung and Bangkalan districts.Methods: This is a descriptive-analytic study with a cross-sectional design conducted among 404 mothers in Tulungagung and Bangkalan districts which were selected by purposive sampling. Data were collected using an interviewer-administered questionnaire, including family characteristics, children feeding practices, environmental sanitation, history of infection, and utilization of health services. The differences in the parenting style characteristics of children under five in two districts were analyzed using Chi-square.Result: There was a significant difference in the characteristics of mothers in Tulungagung and Bangkalan districts, including age, education level, and birth attendant. Socio-cultural, nutrition, and health-related parenting was also significantly differ in terms of parenting duration, training for caregivers, dietary taboo, parenting advice provider, early breastfeeding, other food before 6 months old, vegetable and protein food frequency, Posyandu visit frequency, vitamin A supplementation, iodized salt usage for cooking, child immunization status, child’s age of first immunizations, health facilities visit, initial action before bringing children to health facilities when sick. Significant different was also found in environment sanitation including the condition of house ceiling, walls, floor, living room windows, ventilation, kitchen vent, indoor lighting, clean water facility, ownership of latrines, children feces disposal frequency, and littering location and frequency.Conclusion: In summary, there is a parenting style discrepancy between districts with the highest and lowest prevalence of stunting in children under five.

Cryptosporidiosis and Associated Risk Factors among Children Attending Paediatric Hospitals in Enugu Metropolis, Enugu State, Nigeria

Cryptosporidiosis is a zoonotic disease caused by infection with protozoan parasite of the genus Cryptosporidium. It is associated with moderate to severe diarrhoea which may eventually lead to death. The parasite impedes growth and development of affected children. A hospital based cross-sectional study was conducted to assess cryptosporidiosis and the associated risk factors among children aged 0-15years attending selected paediatric hospitals in Enugu Metropolis between November 2021 and August 2022. A total of five hundred and fifty stool samples were examined for oocysts of Cryptosporidium species using Formol Ethyl-Acetate sedimentation and modified Ziehl Neelsen’s staining techniques. The overall prevalence of the parasite was 14.4% (79/550). Enugu State University of Science and Technology Teaching Hospital recorded the highest prevalence 32(25.6%) of Cryptosporidium species while St. Patrick Hospital recorded the least 1(1.1%). Public hospitals recorded more infections than private hospitals. The age group ≤ 5years 43(15.8%) recorded the highest prevalence. Males 52(17.1%) were more infected than females 27(10.98%), which was not significant (P&gt;0.05). Children whose parents/caregivers had only primary education 11(26.8%), has the highest prevalence while those whose parents/caregivers had tertiary education 17(8.9%), has the least. Children whose parents/caregivers were farming has the highest prevalence 9(25.0%), while children of civil servants, 40(12.4%) has the least which was not significant (P&gt;0.05). Children living in multifamily residences 48(15.2%) had higher prevalence than those living in private homes, 2(6.3%). Other protozoan parasites identified in the study were Entamoeba histolytica 88(16.1%) and Giardia lamblia 69(12.5%). There were co-infections of Cryptosporidium and Entamoeba histolytica 27(4.9%), Cryptosporidium and Giardia lamblia 21(4.3%) which was not significant (P&gt;0.05). Intervention through health education on good hygiene habits, and provision of clean water and proper disposal of faeces will help reduce cryptosporidiosis among children.