ArticleBMC public health2018
Are schoolchildren less infected if they have good knowledge about parasitic worms? A case study from rural Côte d'Ivoire.
Article in BMC public health, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
8 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 17 citations in OpenAlex.
- Prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections in Brazil: a systematic review.Revista da Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical · 2021Pooled it
- Effectiveness of a School Intervention Based on Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice of Soil-Transmitted Helminths.The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene · 2024Trial
- Research on health education and health promotion during the process of schistosomiasis elimination III new approaches for student health education.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2025Article
- Prevalence and Associated Risk Factors of Intestinal Parasitic Infections Among Patients Requesting Stool Examination at Kidus Harvey Health Center, Ayna Bugina District, North Wollo, Ethiopia.Journal of parasitology research · 2025Article
- A cross-sectional study on the prevalence and associated risk factors for intestinal parasitic infections among under-five aged children in Dabat primary hospital, north Gondar, Ethiopia.Journal of parasitic diseases : official organ of the Indian Society for Parasitology · 2024Article
- Model validation for a knowledge and practices survey towards prevention of soil-transmitted helminth infections in rural villages in Indonesia.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- Human Intestinal Parasitic Infections: Prevalence and Associated Risk Factors among Elementary School Children in Merawi Town, Northwest Ethiopia.Journal of parasitology research · 2021Article
- Strongyloides stercoralis: Spatial distribution of a highly prevalent and ubiquitous soil-transmitted helminth in Cambodia.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2019Article
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Authors and funding
13 authors at 4 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundParasitic worms (helminths) are common infections in low- and middle-income countries. For most helminth species, school-aged children are at highest risk of infection and morbidity, such as impaired cognitive and physical development. Preventive chemotherapy is the current mainstay for helminthiases control. Sanitation improvement and hygiene-related education are important complementary strategies, which act by altering children's behaviour. However, little is known about the effect of improved knowledge on the risk of helminth infection. The aim of this study was to assess the potential influence of knowledge that children acquired at home or in school, without any specific health education intervention, on helminth infections.
methodsIn May 2014, we conducted a cross-sectional survey in western Côte d'Ivoire. A total of 2498 children, aged 9-12 years, were subjected to three consecutive stool examinations using duplicate Kato-Katz thick smears to determine infections with soil-transmitted helminths and Schistosoma mansoni. Additionally, children were interviewed to assess their knowledge about helminth infections. Four knowledge scores were constructed by factor analysis; one, reflecting general knowledge about helminths and three manifesting helminth species-specific knowledge. The effect of general and specific knowledge on children's helminth infection status was determined using meta-analysis.
resultsChildren who scored high in the hookworm-specific knowledge were less likely to be infected with hookworm but no association was found for the other helminth species. Moreover, greater general knowledge was not associated with lower odds of being infected with any helminth species. Most of the children interviewed believed that the effect of preventive chemotherapy is permanent, and hence, re-treatment is not necessary.
conclusionsSpecific knowledge about different types of helminths might not suffice to induce behavioural change which in turn reduces infection and reinfection with helminths. Health education interventions should strive to strengthen the perception of risk and to clarify the true benefit of preventive chemotherapy.
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