Enteric parasites prevalence at Saint Camille Medical Centre in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

OBJECTIVE To assess the prevalence of parasitic infections among patients attending Saint Camille Medical Centre and to estimate co-parasitic infections rates. METHODS From January to December 2009, stool samples were collected from 11 728 persons, aged from five months to 72 years and suffering from gastroenteritis. After macroscopic description, the stools were examined by light microscopy to search for the presence of parasites. RESULTS From the 11 728 analyzed stools, 6 154 (52.47%) were infected with at least one parasite. Protozoan frequently encountered were: Giardia intestinalis (43.47%), Entamoeba histolytica/Entamoeba dispar (30.74%) and Trichomonas intestinalis (21.72%), while Hymenolepis nana (2.25%) was the most common helminth. Co-infections occurred in 22.34% cases. Within the multi-infected samples, dual and triple infections accounted for 71.18% and 20.00%, respectively. Giardia intestinalis for protozoan and Hymenolepis nana for helminths were the most implicated co-infections. CONCLUSIONS This study confirms that intestinal parasites are still a public health problem in Burkina Faso. To reduce the incidence of parasitic infections, it is necessary to promote the education of people so that they practice the rules of individual and collective hygiene.