The prevalence of intestinal parasitic protozoan among patients in Ad-Dawadimi General Hospital, Saudi Arabia

ABSTRACT

Intestinal parasitic protozoan diseases in Saudi Arabia are a significant public health problem with prevalence ranging from 4.1% to 42%. This study was carried out to determine the risk factors associated with the prevalence of intestinal parasitic protozoan infections among patients in Ad-Dawadimi General Hospital, Saudi Arabia. This study was conducted from the 1st of January to the end of December 2015. Faecal specimens from 4,000 patients who were admitted to Ad-Dawadimi General Hospital during the study period were analyzed by the formal-ether concentration technique to detect trophozoites and cysts of Giardia lamblia and Entamoeba histolytica. Ziehl-Neelsen staining was used to detect Cryptosporidium oocysts. Overall, intestinal parasitic protozoans were found in 470 patients (11.75%). The infection rate of Giardia lamblia, Cryptosporidium spp. and Entamoeba histolytica/dispar was 5%, 4.3% and 2.5%, respectively. Infection among males was (8.4%), while among females it was (3.4%). Age, gender and season were highly significant factors on the prevalence of parasites infection at P <0.005. However, the present study indicated that intestinal parasitic protozoan infections are still a public health problem in Saudi Arabia.