Abstract:

Objective  To understand the status of echinococcosis in Maqing County of Qinghai Province in order to facilitate echinococcosis control in this region.  Methods  Ultrasonic scanning and indirect hemagglutination assay were used to detect echinococcosis infection in residents >1 year old, according to the People’s Republic of China Health Industry Standard--Diagnostic Criteria for Hydatid Disease（WS257-2006）. Meanwhile, ELISA was used to detect the Echinococcus antigen in dog’s feces collected in Youyun, Dangluo and Xiadawu townships.  Results  Ultrasonic scanning showed that the prevalence of hydatid disease in the residents was 7.4% （116/1 561）, cystic hydatid disease 5.3% （82/1 561）, alveolar hydatid disease 2.2% （34/1 561）. The serum positive rate in human population was 23.8%（307/1 288）. Of the 82 cases of cystic hydatid disease, 23 cases （28.1%） had the hydatid cyst with a diameter of >10 cm. The prevalence in males and females in the county was 5.3% （40/753） and 9.4% （76/808）, respectively （Ρ<0.05）. Among populations with different occupations, the highest prevalence of hydatid disease fell into houseworkers （11/61, 18.0%）, monks（5/41, 12.2%） and herdsmen（84/758, 11.1%）. Among the age groups, the groups of >60 years（24/132, 18.2%） and 30-40 years（31/302, 10.3%） had higher prevalence of hydatid disease. The three townships with the higher prevalence were Youyun（29/247, 11.7%）, Changmahe （6/63, 9.5%） and Dangluo（54/645, 8.4%）. Of the 199 samples of dog’s feces, 54 were positive for Echinococcus antigens（27.1%）， with a positive rate of 40.4% （23/57） in Youyun towship, being significantly higher than in the other two（Ρ<0.05）.  Conclusion  Maqin county is a co-endemic area of cystic echinococcosis and alveolar echinococcosis. The prevalence is higher in females and those over 60 years-old.

Key words: Qinghai Province, Maqing County, Echinococcosis