A STUDY OF PREVALENCE OF INTESTINAL PARASITES AND ASSOCIATED RISK FACTORS AMONG THE SCHOOL CHILDREN OF BIRATNAGAR SUBMETROPOLITAN, EASTERN REGION OF NEPAL.

Introduction: Intestinal parasitic diseases constitute a global health burden in numerous developing countries mainly due to fecal contamination of water and food, lack of adequate basic sanitation, environmental and socio-cultural factors enhancing parasitic transmissions. Objectives: To measure the prevalence of intestinal parasitic infestation and to identify risk factors associated with parasitic infestation among the school children of Biratnagar Submetropolitan. Materials and Methods: The cross?sectional study was conducted in Grade VI, VII and VIII in Government and private schools of Biratnagar. Stratified random sampling method was applied to choose the schools and the study subjects. The Chi?square test was used to measure the association of risk factors and parasitic infestation. Results: Overall prevalence of intestinal parasitic infestation among the school children was 35.5 percent. Around 15.5% of the study population was found to be infested with helminthes and 20% of the study population was protozoa infected. Hookworm species was found higher (6.5%) in comparison to other worms i.e. Ascaris lumbricoides (5.5%), Trichuris trichuria (2.5%) and Hymenolepsis nana (1.0%). Regarding protozoal infestation, Giardia Lamblia was seen higher (12.5%) followed by Entamoeba histolytica (7.5%). Irregular bath, not using soap after defecation, not wearing sandals, unhygienic skin, nail and clothes cleanliness, habit of nail biting and thumb sucking were found to be significant relationship in the causation of intestinal parasitic infestation. Conclusions: The prevalence of intestinal parasitic infestation was found to be high in school children of Biratnagar. Poor personal hygiene and sanitary condition are supposed to play an important role in establishing intestinal parasitic infections.