Prevalence of Leukocyturia among Schistosoma haematobium Infected School Children in Cameroon

Abstract

Background: Urinary schistosomiasis is endemic in many areas in Cameroon and for effective control measures, an efficient, quick and cheap diagnosis should be integrated. This will ensure the proper management of infection due to Schistosoma haematobium in low resource communities. Aim: This study aim to evaluate the use of leukocyturia as an indicator for the indirect diagnosis of urinary schistosomiasis in endemic areas in Cameroon. Methodology: 266 school children were recruited in this cross-sectional study. Urine samples were collected, examined macroscopically for haematuria and subsequently screened for microhaematuria and leukocyturia using urine reagent strips. The microscopic examination of urine samples for schistosome eggs was carried out using filtration technique. Results: The mean ± SD age of school children was 8.55±2.03 years (range, 5 to 15 years). The prevalence of S. haematobium and geometric mean intensity of infection were 6.4% (17/266) and 4.1±6.2 eggs/10 mL of urine respectively. Infection with S. haematobium showed significant association with age (P < 0.05). The prevalence of microhaematuria and leukocyturia among infected children were 64.7% (11/17) and 70.6% (12/17) respectively. Microhaematuria, proteinuria and leukocyturia was high in girls compared to boys and among participants aged 9-11 years. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that the prevalence of leukocyturia was higher among the infected children. Future studies are needed to elucidate the possible use of urine leukocytes as an indicator for rapid diagnosis of urinary schistosomiasis in endemic areas of Cameroon.