CHINESE JOURNAL OF PARASITOLOGY AND PARASITIC DISEASES ›› 2023, Vol. 41 ›› Issue (6): 718-724.doi: 10.12140/j.issn.1000-7423.2023.06.008

• ORIGINAL ARTICLES • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Surveillance on soil-transmitted helminth infections in Yunnan Province from 2016 to 2022

WU Fangwei(), PENG Jia, ZI Jinrong, LI Benfu, YAN Xinliu, CAI Xuan, WANG Zhengqing, XU Qian, LI Jianxiong, YANG Yaming*()   

  1. Yunnan Institute of Parasitic Diseases, Pu’er 665000, China
  • Received:2023-06-27 Revised:2023-09-12 Online:2023-12-30 Published:2023-12-27
  • Contact: * E-mail: yangymsm@126.com

Abstract:

Objective To understand the prevalence and transmission of soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infection in Yunnan Province, providing scientific basis for formulating prevention and control strategies and measures. Methods The surveillance sites were selected in Yunnan Province according to the National Surveillance Program for Clonorchiasis and Soil-transmitted Nematodes (Pilot) from 2016 to 2022. From each district (city), at least one county (city, township) was selected as the surveillance site, which was further divided into 5 sectors (east, west, south, north and central) according to the geographic location. From each sector, one township (town) was selected randomly and an administrative village was selected from the township (town) to conduct the surveillance among permanent residents over 3 years old. No less than 200 residents were cluster sampled from each administrative village and no less than 1 000 residents from each surveillance site. Fecal samples (about 30 g) from the enrolled residents were collected and examined for STH eggs (hookworm, Ascaris lumbricoides, Truchuris trichiura and Enterobius vermicularis) by modified Kato-Katz thick smear method (two slide-reading for each sample). The infection rate and intensity of STH were calculated. The hookworm egg positive samples were further identified for species by tube-filter paper culture method. Children aged 3-9 were additionally examined for E. vermicularis eggs with transparent tape and anal swab method. Chi-square test was used to compare the infection rates. Results A total of 108 221 residents were enrolled in the surveillance from 71 surveillance sites in Yunnan Province and the total STH infection rate was 6.91% (7 475/108 221) from 2016 to 2022. The infection rates of hookworm, A. lumbricoides, T. trichiura and E. vermicularis were 3.75% (4 056/108 221), 1.68% (1 817/108 221), 2.23% (2 408/108 221) and 0.11% (121/108 221) respectively. A total of 1 288 cases of hookworm infection were identified by tube-filter paper culture method. 93.09% (1 199/1 288) of them were infected with Necator americanus, 6.13% (79/1 288) were infected with Ancylostoma duodenale and 0.78% (10/1 288) were co-infected. From 2016 to 2022, the annual infection rates of STH in Yunnan Province were 12.03% (1 606/13 350), 8.67% (1 317/15 195), 7.10% (1 095/15 425), 5.37% (897/16 693), 5.83% (969/16 617), 5.77% (922/15 967) and 4.47% (669/14 974) respectively. The differences between the infection rates among different years were statistically significant (χ2 = 880.360, P < 0.01). Among the 16 prefectures (cities) surveyed, the highest STH infection rate was found in Xishuangbanna (26.21%, 1 312/5 006) and the lowest was found in Lijiang City (0.15%, 6/4 041). The differences between the infection rates among different prefectures (cities) were statistically significant (χ2 = 8 081.151, P < 0.01). The STH infection rates in male and female were 6.35% (3 199/50 409) and 7.40% (4 276/57 812) respectively, with a significant difference (χ2 = 46.198, P < 0.01). Among the different age-groups, nationalities, occupations and educational levels, the highest infection rates were found in the group of 10 to 19 year-old (8.56%, 1 249/14 592), Bulang ethnic group (30.20%, 778/2 576), students (7.96%, 1 638/20 588) and illiteracy or semi-illiteracy group (10.06%, 1 078/10 719), with the significant differences (χ2 = 139.432, 8 546.389, 324.218, 833.291; all P < 0.01). Conclusion From 2016 to 2022, the STH infection rate in Yunnan Province showed a decreasing trend, but remained at a comparatively high level in some areas. It is imperative to continuously strengthen comprehensive control of STH for the key population including the ethnic groups near the border areas, farmers and the elderly.

Key words: Soil-transmitted helminth, Infection rate, Surveillance, Yunnan Province

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