Schistosoma mansoni and other helminthes infections at Haike primary school children, North-East, Ethiopia: a cross-sectional study

Daniel Getacher Feleke, Solomon Arega, Mulien Tekleweini, Kegnitu Kindie, Alemu Gedefie

Schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminthes infections are among the widely distributed infections worldwide. In Ethiopia, parasitic helminthic infections and schistosomiasis are among the most predominant causes of outpatient morbidity. Hence there is still lack of epidemiological information in North-Eastern Ethiopia, this study aimed to determine the prevalence and associated factors of Schistosoma mansoni and other helminthes infections at Haike primary school children, Haike, North-East Ethiopia. The overall prevalence of S. mansoni and other helminthes infections using formol-ether concentration technique was 85/279 (30.5%). Schistosoma mansoni was the dominant parasites as detected by both direct wet mount and formol-ether concentration technique with 44/52 (84.6%) and 65/85 (76.5%) respectively. Chi square test showed significant association between parasitic infections and age of the school children (p = 0.003). The binary logistic regression analysis was showed strong statistical association (p = 0.00) between swimming habit and parasitic infections (AOR = 6.61, 95% CI 3.31-13.12). Family used lake as source of water showed statistically significant association (AOR = 5.35, 95% CI 2.97-12.32). Furthermore, those who get water from river (AOR = 1.24, 95% CI 0.33-4.66) were more likely to be infected with S. mansoni and geo-helminthes than those who used tap water.