The Nutritional Impact of Intestinal Parasitic Infections on Schoolchildren in Mashi Local Government Area, Katsina, Nigeria

Abstract

Aim: The study assess the nutritional impact of intestinal parasitic infections on schoolchildren in Mashi Local Government Area (LGA), Katsina, Nigeria. Study Design: A cross-sectional study carried out between February to July 2024. Methodology: Four hundred schoolchildren were randomly selected from four public primary schools. Faecal samples were examined using formol-ether concentration technique. Anthropometric indices were used as indicators of nutritional status. Results: The prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections was 38%. The species recorded were Schistosoma mansoni (29.4%), Hookworm (22.2%), Ascaris lumbricoides (13.1%), Strongyloides stercoralis (11.8%), Trichuris trichiura (11.1%), Entamoeba histolytica (7.8%), Hymenolepis nana (7.8%), Giardia lamblia (4.6%), Taenia species (2.6%), Cryptosporidium spp. (2.0%), Enterobius vermicularis (1.3%), and Balantidium coli (0.65%). 14.4% of infected children harbored more than one parasite, indicating polyparasitism. Nutritional status indicators showed chronic and acute malnutrition among the study participants, with all schools having negative Height-for-Age Z-scores (HAZ), Weight-for-Age Z-scores (WAZ) and BMI-for-Age Z-scores (BAZ) showed statistically significant variation across the schools. Stunting is the most critical problem, with 81.3% of the children stunted, followed by underweight 47.3%, Wasting is relatively less prevalent, affecting 14.3%. There was no variation between prevalence of the three types of malnutrition in infected and non-infected children. For stunting, 82.2% of infection-negative children and 79.7% of infection-positive children were stunted, with no significant difference (AOR = 0.87, p = 0.62). Similarly, the prevalence of underweight was virtually identical between infected (46.4%) and non-infected children (47.8%), with no significant association (AOR = 0.99, p = 1.00). For wasting, infection-positive children had a slightly higher prevalence (15.0%) compared to infection-negative children (13.8%), but the difference was not statistically significant (AOR = 1.04, p = 0.89). Conclusion: The study found moderate prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections among the study population. High burden of malnutrition was observed, characterized by widespread chronic malnutrition as evidence by high level of stunting, presence of acute malnutrition reflected by wasting, with underweight highlighting the combined effects of both conditions. There was no association between the presence of intestinal parasitic infections and malnutrition in the study population. The findings highlight the need for combined deworming and urgent nutritional interventions.