<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<p><italic>Enterobius vermicularis</italic> is a prevalent intestinal nematode. The objective of the research was to study enterobiasis prevalence in symptomatic children &lt;15 years of age attending community health center in North – Western part of Slovenia in years 2017 – 2022. Perianal tape tests were performed on three consecutive days. The overall prevalence was 34.2 % (296 out of 864 children included). The mean age of children positive for <italic>E. vermicularis</italic> was 5.77 (95 % CI: 5.51 – 6.04) and 4.74 (95 % CI: 4.54 – 4.95), p&lt;0.001 for children with negative test results. The positivity rate was not significantly different for boys compared to girls (boys 37.0 %, 95 % CI: 32.4 % – 41.8 %, girls 31.8 %, 95 % CI: 27.6 % – 36.2 %, p=0.107). The number of boys with all three samples positive in a sample set was higher compared to girls (p – value 0.002). Family size affected the positivity rate – the mean number of siblings was higher in positive children. Significant association with <italic>E. vermicularis</italic> infection was proven by the presence of anal pruritus and absence of abdominal discomfort. High <italic>E. vermicularis</italic> warrants careful monitoring of trends and public health response. It is necessary to encourage the use of hygiene measures in schools and empower parents to recognize enterobiasis timely.</p></abstract>

Enterobius vermicularis is a prevalent intestinal nematode. The objective of the research was to study enterobiasis prevalence in symptomatic children <15 years of age attending community health center in North – Western part of Slovenia in years 2017 – 2022. Perianal tape tests were performed on three consecutive days. The overall prevalence was 34.2 % (296 out of 864 children included). The mean age of children positive for E. vermicularis was 5.77 (95 % CI: 5.51 – 6.04) and 4.74 (95 % CI: 4.54 – 4.95), p<0.001 for children with negative test results. The positivity rate was not significantly different for boys compared to girls (boys 37.0 %, 95 % CI: 32.4 % – 41.8 %, girls 31.8 %, 95 % CI: 27.6 % – 36.2 %, p=0.107). The number of boys with all three samples positive in a sample set was higher compared to girls (p – value 0.002). Family size affected the positivity rate – the mean number of siblings was higher in positive children. Significant association with E. vermicularis infection was proven by the presence of anal pruritus and absence of abdominal discomfort. High E. vermicularis warrants careful monitoring of trends and public health response. It is necessary to encourage the use of hygiene measures in schools and empower parents to recognize enterobiasis timely.

<italic>Enterobius vermicularis</italic> infection: a cross-sectional study in preschool and school children in the North-Western part of Slovenia

Helminthologia

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

 infection: a cross-sectional study in preschool and school children in the North-Western part of Slovenia

Enterobius vermicularis is a prevalent intestinal nematode. The objective of the research was to study enterobiasis prevalence in symptomatic children <15...

Symptom	No. (%) of positive children with symptom (total No. of children = 296)	No. (%) of negative children with symptom (total No. of children = 568)	p-value
Nausea	26 (8.8%)	55 (9.7%)	0.667
Abdominal discomfort	135 (45.6%)	300 (52.8%)	0.044
Diarrhea	31 (10.5%)	73 (12.8%)	0.308
Weight loss	8 (2.7%)	29 (5.1%)	0.098
Insomnia	38 (12.8%)	90 (15.8%)	0.238
Anal pruritus	129 (43.6%)	199 (35.0%)	0.014
Vulvovaginal pruritus	21* (14.5%)	29* (9.3%)	0.1

Variable	No. (%) of children with only one positive sample (106 children)	No. (%) of children with all three positive samples (103 children)	p-value
Mean age	5.43	6.41	0.004
Gender
No. of boys	43 (40.6%)	64 (62.1%)	0.002
No. of girls	63 (59.4%)	39 (37.9%)
Parental education
Primary school	10 (9.8%)	3 (3.0%)	0.126
Secondary school	26 (25.5%)	25 (24.8%)
University	66 (64.7%)	73 (72.3%)
No. of siblings	1.24	1.4	0.241
Symptoms
Nausea	11 (10.4%)	11 (10.7%)	0.943
Abdominal discomfort	50 (47.2%)	51 (49.1%)	0.735
Diarrhea	12 (11.3%)	12 (11.6%)	0.94
Weight loss	2 (1.9%)	3 (2.9%)	0.628
Insomnia	16 (15.1%)	11 (10.7%)	0.341
Anal pruritus	48 (45.2.%)	45 (43.6%)	0.817
Vulvovaginal pruritus	9* (14.2%)	5* (12.8%)	0.834

Enterobius vermicularis infection: a cross-sectional study in preschool and school children in the North-Western part of Slovenia

Article Category: Research Article

Pubblicato online: 30 dic 2022

Pagine: 357 - 363

Ricevuto: 06 ott 2022

Accettato: 15 nov 2022

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/helm-2022-0040

Parole chiave
Enterobiasis, prevalence, cellulose tape test

© 2022 M. Sočan, E. Štromajer, M. Ravnik, M. Mrzel, E. Grilc, I. Grmek Košni, published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Clinical data in children tested for E. vermicularis infection.

Socio-demographic characteristic and clinical data in children with only one or all three positive samples for E. vermicularis in a three-sample set.

Enterobius vermicularis infection: a cross-sectional study in preschool and school children in the North-Western part of Slovenia

Article Category: Research Article

Pubblicato online: 30 dic 2022

Pagine: 357 - 363

Ricevuto: 06 ott 2022

Accettato: 15 nov 2022

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/helm-2022-0040

Parole chiaveEnterobiasis, prevalence, cellulose tape test

© 2022 M. Sočan, E. Štromajer, M. Ravnik, M. Mrzel, E. Grilc, I. Grmek Košni, published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Clinical data in children tested for E. vermicularis infection.

Socio-demographic characteristic and clinical data in children with only one or all three positive samples for E. vermicularis in a three-sample set.

Parole chiave
Enterobiasis, prevalence, cellulose tape test