A single presumptive deworming may not suffice to reduce the burden of intestinal parasitic infections during pregnancy in rural Amhara, Ethiopia.

Rose L Molina, Bethlehem Haymanot, Workagegnhu Tarekegn Kidane, Firehiwot Workneh, Blair J Wylie, Parul Christian, Yemane Berhane, Alemayehu Worku, Nebiyou Fasil, Anne Cc Lee, Yunhee Kang, Grace J Chan, Kalkidan Yibeltal, Sitota Tsegaye, Ingrid E Olson, Mulatu Melese Derebe, Yoseph Yemane Berhane, Estifanos Baye

Journal: BMC research notes 2025;18(1):245

PMID: 40462163

Free Full Text on BioMed Central View on PubMed

Abstract

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to assess the prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections among pregnant women in the third trimester who received prior presumptive deworming in 12 health centers in the Amhara region, Ethiopia. This sub-study was part of the parent Enhancing Nutrition and Antenatal Infection Treatment (ENAT) study; a randomized clinical effectiveness study conducted to determine the effectiveness of packages of antenatal interventions to enhance maternal nutrition and infection management on birth outcomes.

RESULTS

Three hundred fifty women provided a stool sample in their 3rd trimester for screening using wet mount microscopy. All women had previously received 500 mg of presumptive mebendazole in the 2nd trimester. One in three women (109/350, 31.0%) were found to have a parasitic stool infection after prior deworming and 15% of women reported gastrointestinal symptoms. The most common infections were Giardia lamblia (n = 43, 37.4%), Entamoeba histolytica (n = 40, 34.8%), and Hookworm (n = 25, 21.7%). Six mothers had co-infections with at least two parasites with trophozoites of Giardia lamblia and Entamoeba histolytica co-infection being dominant.

Address: Department of Reproductive Health and Population, Addis Continental Institute of Public Health, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. [email protected].; Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Addis Continental Institute of Public Health, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.; Department of Global Health and Health Policy, Addis Continental Institute of Public Health, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.; Department of Pediatrics, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.; Center for Human Nutrition, Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.; Department of Nutrition and Behavioral Science, Addis Continental Institute of Public Health, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.; Addis Continental Institute of Public Health, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia.; Amhara Public Health Institute, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia.; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, USA.; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.; Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA.; Department of Medical Critical Care, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.; Department of Pediatrics, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA. [email protected].; Department of Pediatrics, Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI, USA. [email protected].; Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Addis Continental Institute of Public Health, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. [email protected].

DOI: 10.1186/s13104-025-07309-w

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MeSH Terms: Adolescent, Adult, Female, Humans, Pregnancy, Young Adult, Anthelmintics, Ethiopia, Feces, Giardia lamblia, Giardiasis, Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic, Mebendazole, Pregnancy Complications, Parasitic, Prevalence, Rural Population