Urinary Schistosomiasis among Orphans and Vulnerable Children in a Rehabilitation home in Ibadan, Nigeria

INTRODUCTION:  Schistosomiasis is a chronic infection transmitted through skin penetration of the parasite, schistosomes while wading in freshwater bodies. The infection is common in children. This cross sectional study describes the presence of schistosomiasis and demographic characteristics among children in a rehabilitation home in Ibadan, Nigeria who presented with haematuria.  

METHODS:   Urine samples of all the 71 children who reside in the home were collected. Urine analysis to measure haematuria, proteinuria, red cell counts, pus cells, bacteria cells and to detect the presence of Schistosoma haematobium ova was done. Questionnaires were used to collect information on demographic and environmental characteristics of the children. 

RESULTS:  The mean age of respondents was 11.8(SD 4.0) with little over half of the respondents (56.3%) being males. The prevalence of schistosomiasis was 19.7% with a high preponderance among males (64.3%) and children aged 12 years and above (71.4%). Of the 14 infected children, 12 were from a local government area in North Central Nigeria, 11 of who had a history of wading in a particular water body (Moshe River). Among the children with schistosomiasis, 13 (92.9%) had microscopic haematuria with a median egg count of 9.5/10ml (2.0-172.0). All the infected children had red blood cells, pus cells and bacterial cells on urine microscopy. 

CONCLUSIONS:  There is a high prevalence of Urinary Schistosomiasis among these children who come from the source local government area in North Central Nigeria. Appropriate tracing to identify other children, treatment, health education and interventions needed for the control and prevention of schistosomiasis need to be instituted in this source population.