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. 2019 May 10;19(1):406.
doi: 10.1186/s12879-019-4053-9.

Prevalence of intestinal parasites and associated risk factors among inmates of Mekelle prison, Tigrai Region, Northern Ethiopia, 2017

Fitsum Mardu  1 , Mekonnen Yohannes  2 , Desalegn Tadesse  2
Affiliations

Prevalence of intestinal parasites and associated risk factors among inmates of Mekelle prison, Tigrai Region, Northern Ethiopia, 2017

Fitsum Mardu et al. BMC Infect Dis. .

Abstract

Background: In Ethiopia, like other developing countries, intestinal parasitic infections are the major public health problems affecting millions annually. Overcrowding and poor living conditions are the major risk factors. Prison inmates are among the most vulnerable groups to intestinal parasitic infections. However, there is scarcity of epidemiological data regarding intestinal parasites among prison inmates in Ethiopia, notably in Tigrai. Thus, we aimed to determine the prevalence of intestinal parasites and identify the associated factors among inmates of Mekelle prison, Tigrai, Northern Ethiopia.

Methods: A cross sectional study involving 291 inmates was conducted from February to June 2017 among inmates of Mekelle prison. After systematically selecting subjects, stool specimens were examined using direct wet mount and formol-ether concentration techniques. We used SPSS version 21 for data analysis. We considered p-value less than 0.05 significant at 95% confidence level.

Results: Of the 291 inmates enrolled in the study, 124 (42.6%) harbored one or more intestinal parasites. The protozoan Entamoeba histolytica/dispar/moshkovskii was the predominant parasite accounted for 68 (23.3%) of the infections followed by Giardia lamblia (10.3%) and Entamoeba coli (8.2%). Fourteen (4.8%) participants were co-infected with different parasite species. The co-infections of Entamoeba histolytica/dispar/moshkovskii and Giardia lamblia were detected among 3.1% of the participants. In bivariate analysis, hand fingernail status (COR 1.86, 95% CI, 1.08-3.20) and duration of stay in prison (COR 2.23, 95% CI 1.31-3.79) were statistically associated with intestinal parasite infections. In multivariable regression, inmates who stayed in the prison for one year or less were more likely to harbor intestinal parasitic infections (p = 0.013) than those who stayed longer. No other single predictor variable was found to be significantly associated with intestinal parasitic infections.

Conclusions: The result of this study showed that intestinal parasites are significant health problems among inmates of Mekelle prison.

Keywords: Ethiopia; Intestinal parasites; Mekelle prison; Prevalence; Prison inmates; Tigrai.

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Conflict of interest statement

Ethics approval and consent to participate

To conduct this study, ethical clearance was obtained from research and ethical review committee of Mekelle University College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Mekelle, Ethiopia with reference number ERC 1013/2017. We also got official permission from Mekelle Prison Center administration. In addition, each participant gave an informed written consent. For participants younger than 16 years old, we received assent forms from their guardians. We kept the confidentiality of any information pertaining to participants. Infected participants were treated by consulting the clinicians at the prison clinic.

Consent for publication

Not applicable

Competing interests

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

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