ArticleActa parasitologica2025
Epidemiological, Morphometric, and Genetic Analysis of Pediculus humanus capitis (Head Lice) in Pakistan: Evidence of Regional Diversity and Global Admixture.
Article in Acta parasitologica, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
Abstract
purposePediculus humanus capitis poses a significant public health challenge among schoolchildren worldwide, emphasising the need for control efforts. The present study aimed to integrate epidemiological, morphometric, and mitochondrial genetic data on head lice across diverse regions of Pakistan.
methodsA cross-sectional study of 1536 school-aged children was carried out across four districts in Pakistan. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data on risk factors. Head lice were morphologically examined and genomic DNA extracted. The mitochondrial markers cox 1 and cyt-b were amplified and sequenced.
resultsThe overall prevalence of head lice infestation was 34%. Higher infestation rates were observed among females, children aged 6-10 years, those from large families, individuals with a history of previous infestations, and those from low socioeconomic backgrounds (p < 0.0001). Significant behavioral risk factors included sharing combs or towels and infrequent bathing (p < 0.0001). In contrast, protective factors included parental education, urban residence, and access to medical care (p < 0.0001. Morphometric analysis revealed clear sexual dimorphism, with females showing significantly greater total body length, post-antenna head width, pterothoracic width, and antennal length (p < 0.0001). Molecular analysis of cox1 and cyt-b genes showed that mitochondrial Clade C was predominant among the Pakistani isolates, indicating genetic links to South Asian and African lineages. One cyt-b sequence (PAK 1) grouped with Clade A, clustering with specimens from Thailand, Iraq, Germany, Laos, and Taiwan, suggesting a distinct lineage.
conclusionThis study identifies Pakistan as a potential bridge in the global phylogeography of lice, reflecting both historical and ongoing interregional transmission. These findings contribute to evolutionary and parasitological research and offer a data-driven basis for developing school-based infestation control policies.
Indexed as
Identifiers
41238948What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.