ArticleCureus2026
Impact of Mass Drug Administration on Soil-Transmitted Helminth Infections Across Different Age Groups: A Retrospective Study From Southern Bihar.
Article in Cureus, 2026. 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
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundSoil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections remain a major global public health concern, particularly in India. The Government of India has implemented mass drug administration (MDA) programs using albendazole to treat STH infections. However, the effectiveness of these deworming initiatives in reducing parasitic infections, particularly protozoal infections, remains incompletely characterized in many regions.
methodsThis retrospective observational study was conducted in the Department of Microbiology, Narayan Medical College and Hospital (NMCH), Sasaram, Bihar, India, from November 2023 to June 2025. The study included patients aged 1-84 years with documented prior albendazole deworming who underwent stool examination for suspected intestinal parasitic infections. Stool samples were processed using direct wet mount with saline and Lugol's iodine, and the salt flotation concentration method. Prevalence was calculated as frequencies and percentages. Fisher's exact test was used for comparisons among age groups using IBM SPSS Statistics version 28.0. Individual informed consent was waived, given the retrospective nature and use of anonymized laboratory records.
resultsAmong 124 stool samples examined, 101 were included in the final analysis after excluding 23 samples for inadequate labeling, insufficient quantity, or missing demographic data. The mean age was 23.32 ± 5.42 years, with a male-to-female ratio of 1.59:1. Eight samples (7.9%) tested positive for parasitic infections:
conclusionThe low prevalence of STH reflects the effectiveness of national MDA efforts and improved sanitation in southern Bihar. However, persistent protozoal infections despite prior deworming highlight the need for comprehensive water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) interventions and hygiene education to address protozoal transmission pathways not controlled by albendazole-based deworming programs.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What 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.