Prevalence and Risk Factors of Giardia lamblia and Blastocystis hominis Infections in Children Under Ten Years Old, Hamadan, Iran

Nowadays, parasitic infections are a major health problem throughout the world, particularly in the developing countries. Considering the high susceptibility of children against parasitic infections, the current study aimed to determine the prevalence and associated risk factors of intestinal parasitic infections among children less than 10 years old in urban and rural areas of Hamadan district. The current study was conducted on 395 children (214 males and 181 females), referred to urban and rural health centers in Hamadan district in 2013. Stool samples were examined by formalin-ether concentration technique, and trichrome and modified Ziehl-Neelsen staining methods. The results were analyzed by chi-square test. Of the 395 studied children, 112 (28.4%) were infected with intestinal parasites. Blastocystis hominis was the most frequently detected parasite with the prevalence of 18.5%, followed by Giardia lamblia (10.9%), Entamoeba coli (2.8%), Dientamoeba fragilis (0.8%), Iodamoeba buetschlii (0.8%), Chilomastix mesnili (0.5%), Cryptosporidium spp. (0.5%), Endolimax nana (0.3%) and Entamoeba hartmanni (0.3%). No cases of infection with helminth parasites were found. The results of the study showed a high prevalence of Giardia lamblia and Blastocystis hominis in rural areas compared to urban regions. Therefore it is necessary to promote the public health awareness in the rural population, in order to reduce the frequency of parasitic infections.