INFECTION OF COMMON PROTOZOAN AND HELMINTHES PARASITES IN THE INTESTINE, UNDER FINGER NAIL’S CONTENT AND ASSOCIATED PREDISPOSING FACTORS AMONG THE ASYMPTOMATIC FOOD HANDLERS WORKING IN THE STUDENT CAFETERIA OF DILLA UNIVERSITY
Authors: Unasho Assistant Abayneh 
Published: February 2023

Background: Infection of food borne diseases is a public health problem in developed and developing countries. Ingestion of infective eggs and cysts of faeco- orally transmissible parasites has been linked with the level of knowledge of infection cycle, environmental and personal hygiene. Asymptomatic food- handlers with poor personal hygiene working in the food cafeteria could be potential sources of infection and these individuals need continuous investigation of parasitic infection.

Objectives: This study was aimed at investigating the prevalence of common protozoan and helminthes parasitic infections and associated predisposing factors among the asymptomatic food handlers working in the student cafeteria of Dilla University. 

Methods: A total of 153 asymptomatic food handlers were involved in the study and specimens of the stool and under fingernail’s content were examined using the standard parasite and ova method. The specimen collected from under fingernail’s content and stool specimens were detected by direct microscopy using saline and iodine wet mount preparation to demonstrate the presence of eggs, and protozoan cysts. Species of parasites were morphologically identified based on their microscopic characteristics and the analysis of the data was made manually using the thematic framework method.

Results:   From the total of 153 study participants, 60 (39.2%) of the asymptomatic food handlers were found to have either single or double infections due to Ascaris lumbricoides egg, Tsrichuris trichiura  egg, Entoamoeba histolytica/dispar cyst, Giardia lamblia cyst, Taenia species egg and Schistosoma mansoni egg. Of the total 60 (39.2%) positive cases, 58 (96.7%) positive cases were identified from the stool specimen and 2(3.3%) positive cases were from the specimen collected from the under fingernail’s content. Moreover, of the total 60 infected asymptomatic food handlers, 46(76.7%) had single infection and 14(23.3%) with double infections. Double infection was due to parasites including A.lubricoides with T. trichiura 5(8.3%), A. lumbriodes with T.species 3(5%), A.lubricoides with E.histolytica/dispar cyst 5(8.3%), and E.histolytica/dispar cyst with T.species 1(1.7%). This result also showed knowledge deficiency of food handlers on associated predisposing factors related to infectious cycle working in student cafeteria. 

Concluding Remarks and Recommendation: The present study indicated a high prevalence of intestinal parasites in asymptomatic (apparently health) food handlers and such infected food handlers of any food service establishment could serve as potential source of infection to consumers via infectious cycles. Therefore, we need to develop a culture of awareness creation on personal hygiene, environmental sanitation, and food and water safety, mode of parasitic infection and frequent screening of food-handlers to monitor parasitic infections. Moreover, parasitic detection also could be cheaply done using direct microscopy of stool examination.