No Association between Urogenital Schistosomiasis and HIV Infection among Children in Ore Community, Southwestern Nigeria

ABSTRACT

Aim: To determine if there was any association between urogenital schistosomiasis and HIV infection among children in Ore Community, Southwestern Nigeria. Methodology: Urine samples were collected from 438 children and examined microscopically for ova of Schistosoma haematobium. A sample of 3 ml of blood was drawn from each participant for HIV test. Antibodies to HIV were determined using Determine HIV1/2 kit, Unigold kit and enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results: The overall prevalence of S. haematobium infection was 30.1% while that of HIV infection was 0.9%. None of the 132 S. haematobium infected children had HIV infection while 1.3% of the 306 children negative for S. haematobium were positive for HIV test. Conclusion: This study did not identify an association between urogenital schistosomiasis and HIV infection among children in Ore, Southwestern Nigeria. Therefore, urogenital schistosomiasis may not play a significant role in the spread of HIV infection in a locality where HIV prevalence is low.