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Sero-epidemiology of toxocariasis in school children

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 April 2009

C. V. Holland ,
P. O'Lorcain ,
M. R. H. Taylor  and
A. Kelly
C. V. Holland
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology, Trinity College, Dublin 2, Ireland
P. O'Lorcain
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology, Trinity College, Dublin 2, Ireland
M. R. H. Taylor
Affiliation:
Department of Paediatrics, Trinity College, and the National Children's Hospital, Harcourt Street, Dublin 2, Ireland
A. Kelly
Affiliation:
Department of Community Health and General Practice, Trinity College, Dublin 2, Ireland
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Summary

The seroprevalence of toxocariasis was investigated in 2129 school children ranging in age from 4 to 19 years. Infection, as measured by titre, was found to be high compared to values obtained from children in other countries, with 31% having a titre of ≥ 1:50 and 3·1% having titres of ≥ 1:800. Relalionships between seroprevalence and host factors including age, sex and location, and risk factors including geophagia, thumbsucking and pet ownership were explored. Age was found to be a significant factor in relation to infeclion with Toxocara. Males were significantly more infected than females, as were the inhabitants of rural schools versus urban schools. The percentage of seropositive children varied widely from school to school. Geophagia and pet ownership were found to be significantly associated with toxocariasis. Logistic regression analysis was used to model the relative contribution of these factors to infection wilh Toxocara. While this analysis identified factors which were highly significantly associated with Toxocara titre, the odds ratios were generally low indicating ihe low specificity of the model.

Keywords

toxocariasisepidemiologyserologychildrenhost faclorsrisk factors
Type
Research Article
Information
Parasitology , Volume 110 , Issue 5 , June 1995 , pp. 535 - 545
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1995

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