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Estimation of intestinal nematode prevalence: influence of parasite mating patterns

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 April 2009

H. L. Guyatt  and
D. A. P. Bundy
H. L. Guyatt
Affiliation:
WHO Collaborating Centre for the Epidemiology of Intestinal Parasitic Infections, Wellcome Trust Research Centre for Parasitic Infections, Department of Biology, Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, Prince Consort Road, London SW7 2BB
D. A. P. Bundy
Affiliation:
WHO Collaborating Centre for the Epidemiology of Intestinal Parasitic Infections, Wellcome Trust Research Centre for Parasitic Infections, Department of Biology, Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, Prince Consort Road, London SW7 2BB
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Summary

Prevalence of infection with intestinal helminths is usually assessed through stool examination. There are limitations in using this technique to measure infection status, since some infected individuals have no patent infection. The relationship between infection assessed by stool examination and actual infection prevalence is investigated for the three major nematode species-Ascaris lumbricoides, Trichuris trichiura and the bookworms-using a model which describes the presence of non-egg producing worm combinations. The analysis demonstrates that stool examination under-estimates the actual infection prevalence, and that the degree of under-estimation is dependent on the level of infection, the nematode species and the parasite sex ratio. These findings have implications for the validity of epidemiological surveys and the evaluation of control programmes.

Keywords

Ascaris lumbricoidesTrichuris trichiurahookwormprevalencefrequency distribution
Type
Research Article
Information
Parasitology , Volume 107 , Issue 1 , July 1993 , pp. 99 - 105
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1993

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