Iron deficiency anaemia associated with helminths and asymptomatic malaria infections among rural school children in Southwestern Nigeria

Objective: To estimate the relative contribution of causes of anaemia in the rural communities\udand evaluate the association between parasitic infections and anaemia.\udMethods: A total of 292 blood and stool samples of aged 1-15 years school children were\udcollected and analyzed using direct smear saline preparation and concentration methods for\udexamination of ova of parasites in the stool samples with thick and thin blood films stained using\udGiemsa and Leishman stains as described by World Health Organization. Serum was estimated\udusing ELISA test kit by Syntron Bioresearch, Inc., USA.\udResults: The overall prevalence rate of parasitic infection was 66.4% with four species of intestinal\udhelminth identified. Ascaris lubricoides (50.0%) was the most common followed by hookworm\ud(8.9%), Trichuris trichiura (6.2%) and Schistosoma mansoni (1.4%). The mean haemoglobin level of\udplasmodium positive school children without intestinal helminth infection (10.8 g/dL) was slightly\udhigher than those with intestinal helminth (10.0 g/dL). The mean serum ferritin of plasmodium\udpositive without intestinal helminth (23.7 g/L) was also higher than those with helminth (22.5 g/\udL) and the differences were not statistically significant (P>0.05). Age and gender also made no\udsignificant differences in the distribution of the infections. However, there was a significant effect\udon weight and height by intestinal helminth infections (P<0.05).\udConclusions: It is recommended that the public be adequately health educated on the\udepidemiology of intestinal helminth infection. A periodic mass treatment of school children with\udiron supplementation is advocated