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A study of prevalence of intestinal parasites and associated risk factors among the school children of Itahari, Eastern Region of Nepal

Introduction: Intestinal parasitic infestation is a major public health problem in children of developing countries Because of poor socio-economic conditions and lack of good hygienic living. The aims of this study were to measure the prevalence of intestinal parasitic infestations and to identify risk factors associated with parasitic infestations among the school children of Itahari Municipality. Materials and Methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted in Grade VI, VII and VIII in Government and private schools of Itahari Municipality. Stratified random sampling method was applied to choose the schools and the study subjects. Semi-structured questionnaire was administered to the study subjects and microscopic examination of stool was done. The Chi-square test was used to measure the association of risk factors and parasitic infestation. Results: Overall intestinal parasitic infestation was found to be 31.5%. Around 13% of the study population was found to be infested with helminthes and 18.5% of the study population was protozoa infected. Not using soap after defecation, not wearing sandals, habit of nail biting and thumb sucking were found to be significantly associated with parasitic infection. Conclusions: The prevalence of intestinal parasitic infestation was found to be high in school children of Itahari. Poor sanitary condition, lack of clean drinking water supply and education is supposed to play an important role in establishing intestinal parasitic infections.

The need to focus on primary health care for chronic diseases

www.thelancet.com/diabetes-endocrinology Vol 4 September 2016 731 genetic familial hypercholesterolaemia in the general population. The lipoprotein(a) concentrations reported in SAFEHEART are pooled for genetic familial hypercholesterolaemia index cases (prone to ascertainment bias) and for relatives with genetic familial hypercholesterolaemia, and then compared with relatives without genetic familial hypercholesterolaemia. It would be interesting to know the lipoprotein(a) concentrations comparing relatives with and without genetic familial hypercholesterolaemia, while excluding index cases. In conclusion, we believe that the SAFE-HEART study can help us to understand the role of lipoprotein(a) in familial hypercholesterolaemia, but we also await data from more populationbased studies free of ascertainment bias.

Socio-demographic characteristics and the utilization of HIV testing and counselling services among the key populations at the Bhutanese Refugees Camps in Eastern Nepal

ObjectivesThis cross-sectional study was conducted to describe the socio-demographic characteristics, assess the utilization of HIV testing and counselling services, and to explore the reasons for the non-utilization of HIV testing and counselling services among the key populations at the Bhutanese refugee camps in eastern Nepal.ResultsThe HIV testing and counselling services are utilized by less than a third (29%) of the key population among the Bhutanese Refugees. The prime source of information about the HIV testing and counselling sites has been health workers followed by peer/outreach educators and neighbors. Common self-reported barriers for utilization of HIV testing and counselling services by the Bhutanese refugees were self-perceived stigma about HIV, the fear of being discriminated and the lack of knowledge about HIV testing and counselling services. There is a need to analyze the gap between availability and utilization through more qualitative approaches in order to identify interventions to increase the uptake of the HIV testing and counselling services.

Analysis of the Community Diagnosis Program Conducted by Department of Community Medicine of Nobel Medical College Biratnagar

Journal of Nobel Medical College Vol. 2, No.2 Issue 4 May-October 2013 Page 6-10 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/jonmc.v2i2.8798