Table I
Potential risk factors associated with Entamoeba species infection among symptomatic children.
| Variable | Frequency | Positive | Negative |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number (%) | |||
| Gender | |||
| Male | 179 (55.42) | 33 (18.4) | 146 (81.6) |
| Female | 144 (44.58) | 25 (17.4) | 119 (82.6) |
| p-value | 0.884 | ||
| Residency | |||
| Urban | 164 (50.8) | 22 (13.4) | 142 (86.6) |
| Rural | 159 (49.2) | 36 (22.6) | 123 (77.4) |
| p-value | 0.042* | ||
| Water source | |||
| Tap water | 159 (49.2) | 33 (20.8) | 126 (79.2) |
| Bottled water | 164 (50.8) | 25 (15.2) | 139 (84.8) |
| p-value | 0.246 | ||
| Age group (years) | |||
| < 1 | 5.0 (1.5) | 0.0 (0.0) | 5.0 (100) |
| 1–3 | 141 (43.7) | 33 (23.4) | 108 (76.6) |
| 4–6 | 113 (35) | 16 (14.2) | 97 (85.8) |
| 7–9 | 61 (18.9) | 7.0 (11.5) | 54 (88.5) |
| ≥ 10 | 3.0 (0.9) | 2.0 (66.7) | 1.0 (33.3) |
| p-value | 0.032* | ||
| Total | 323 (100) | 58 (18) | 265 (82) |
Fig. 1.
The Lugol’s iodine wet mount of a stool sample showed cystic stage of Entamoeba species (blue arrows) applying a light microscope at a magnification of 40×.
Fig. 2.
Shows agarose gel electrophoresis for nested PCR products stained with 0.2 mg/ml ethidium bromide, using primers species specific for Entamoeba histolytica. Positive samples reveal 439 bp bands at lanes 2, 5, 8, 10–16, 19, and 21.
Lane 23 represented positive control, while lane 22 represented negative control, and lane 1 is the 100 bp DNA marker.
Table II
Potential risk factors associated with Entamoeba histolytica infection among microscopic positive symptomatic children.
| Variable | Frequency | Positive | Negative |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number (%) | |||
| Gender | |||
| Male | 33 (18.4) | 3.0 (1.7) | 30 (51.57) |
| Female | 25 (17.4) | 15 (10.4) | 10 (17.24) |
| p-value | 0.001** | ||
| Residency | |||
| Urban | 22 (13.4) | 5.0 (3.0) | 17 (29.31) |
| Rural | 36 (22.6) | 13 (8.2) | 23 (39.65) |
| p-value | 0.045* | ||
| Water source | |||
| Tap water | 33 (20.8) | 11 (6.9) | 22 (37.93) |
| Bottled water | 25 (15.2) | 7.0 (4.3) | 18 (31.03) |
| p-value | 0.299 | ||
| Age group (years) | |||
| < 1 | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) |
| 1–3 | 33 (23.4) | 14 (9.9) | 19 (32.75) |
| 4–6 | 16 (14.2) | 1.0 (0.9) | 15 (25.86) |
| 7–9 | 7.0 (11.5) | 2.0 (3.3) | 5.0 (8.62) |
| ≥ 10 | 2.0 (66.7) | 1.0 (33.3) | 1.0 (1.72) |
| p-value | 0.004** | ||
| Total | 58 (18) | 18 (31) | 40 (69) |