Prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections among HIV patients in Benin City, Nigeria

ABSTRACT

This study was carried out to determine the presence of intestinal parasites and their correlation with CD4+ T-cell counts and demographics among human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-positive patients in Benin City; Nigeria. Stool specimens from 2;000 HIV-positive patients and 500 controls (HIV-negative individuals) were examined for ova; cysts; or parasites; using standard procedures. In addition; patient's blood samples were analyzed for CD4 counts by flow cytometry. An overall prevalence rate of 15.3was observed among HIVpositive patients while 6.2was noted among non-HIV subjects. HIV status was a significant (P0.0001) risk factor for acquiring intestinal parasitic infections. Male gender; CD4 count 200 cell/ml; and diarrhea were significantly associated with an increased prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections among HIVpositive patients. The level of education; occupation; and source of water among HIV patients significantly (P0.0001) affected the prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections. Ascaris lumbricoides was the most predominant parasite in both HIV-positive patients and controls. A CD4 count 200 cells/ml was significantly associated with only Isospora belli and Cryptosporidium infections. The presence of pathogenic intestinal parasites such as A. lumbricoides; hookworm; Giardia intestinalis; Entamoeba histolytica; Trichuris trichiura; and Taenia species among HIV-infected persons should not be neglected. Cryptosporidium species and I. belli were the opportunistic parasites observed in this study. Routine screening for intestinal parasites in HIV-positive patients is advocated