Frequencies of gastrointestinal parasites among students of primary school in Al Kalakla Locality, Khartoum State, Sudan: a cross-sectional study

<ns4:p><ns4:bold>Background:</ns4:bold>Intestinal parasite spread in tropical countries is especially common among primary school students. This study aimed to determine the frequencies of the intestinal parasite by different techniques among school students in Alkalakla locality, Khartoum state.</ns4:p><ns4:p><ns4:bold>Methods:</ns4:bold>This study was conducted in school students in Al-kalakla locality in Khartoum state from period between 20th December 2016 to 5th May 2017. Stool samples were collected from 134 randomly selected students, of whom 67 were males and 67 were females. All samples were examined using the wet preparation technique, formal ether concentration technique and saturated sugar floatation technique.</ns4:p><ns4:p><ns4:bold>Results:</ns4:bold>The frequency of intestinal parasites was 35.5% overall in the students examined; females were more affected than males (38.8% and 32.8%, respectively). The more affected age groups were 12-14 years followed by 9-11 and 6-8 years old (53.8%, 36.3% and 26.4% respectively). The least frequent intestinal parasite was<ns4:italic>Taenia</ns4:italic>spp. (1.5%) followed by<ns4:italic>Giardia lamblia</ns4:italic>(3.7%),<ns4:italic>Schistosoma mansoni</ns4:italic>and<ns4:italic>Ascaris lumbricoides</ns4:italic>(5.2% each),<ns4:italic>Entamoeba coli</ns4:italic>(7.5%),<ns4:italic>Hymenolepis nana</ns4:italic>(10.4%), and<ns4:italic>Entamoeba histolytica</ns4:italic>(16.4%). In total, 20.9% were infected with single parasite while 14.9% were infected with more than one parasite. The frequency of parasite by formal ether concentration method was 35.8 %, by wet preparation method was 17.9 % and by the saturated sugar flotation method was 16.4%.</ns4:p><ns4:p><ns4:bold>Conclusion:</ns4:bold>Our data showed that intestinal parasites were common in school students; however, females were more affected than males and the 12-14-years age group was the most affected age group. The formal ether concentration method was the best method for detecting of intestinal parasite.</ns4:p>