Malaria is a fatal disease among children in malaria-prone locations such as Addis Zemen and Woreta because of their weak immune systems. Despite the severity of the disease in children, the majority of research conducted in Ethiopia has focused on adult populations rather than children. Furthermore, there is no data on malaria prevalence, risk factors, or parasite density among children in the Addis Zemen and Woreta catchment areas. Therefore, this study was aimed at filling the above gap in the study area. About 422 children were enrolled in the study by systematic sampling technique. A capillary blood sample was collected from each child to do blood film. The overall prevalence of malaria among children attending South Gonder health institutions was 14.7%. The majority of parasite density was moderate parasitemia followed by low parasitemia, giving 71.0% and 16.0%, respectively. Malaria parasite infection was linked to a history of malaria and the presence of stagnant water near a home, but utilization of insecticide-treated bed nets was found to be protective against the infection. Therefore, health education should be strengthened on proper utilization of bed nets, indoor residual spraying, removing stagnant water by discarding old tires that may collect rainwater, and removing debris from streams so streams flow more freely.

Background: Soil-transmitted helminths (STH) are one of the most common infections affecting underprivileged populations in low- and middle-income countries. Ascaris lumbricoides, Trichuris trichiura, and hookworm are the three main species that infect people. School children are the most vulnerable groups for STH infections due to their practice of walking and playing barefoot, poor personal hygiene, and environmental sanitation. However, evidence is limited in the study area. So, this study aimed to assess the current prevalence, infection intensity, and associated risk factors of STHs among school children in Tachgayint woreda, Northcentral Ethiopia. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among school children of Tachgayint woreda from February to May 2021. The study participants were chosen via systematic random sampling. Stool samples were collected from 325 children and examined using the Kato-Katz technique. The data was analyzed using SPSS version 23. Binary and multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to identify the potential associated factors for STHs. An adjusted odds ratio (AOR) with a 95% confidence interval (CI) was used to measure the magnitude of the association. A P-value <0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: The overall prevalence of STHs in this study was 36.0% (95% CI: 30.5–41.2%). Ascaris lumbricoides are the most prevalent species 89 (27.4%) followed by hookworm 14 (4.3%) and Trichuris trichiura 10 (3.1%). All of the infected school children had light-intensity of infections with the mean of eggs per gram (EPG) being 464.53. Lack of shoe wearing habit (AOR = 4.08, 95% CI: 1.29–12.88) and having untrimmed fingernail (AOR = 1.85, 95% CI: 1.06–3.22) were identified as risk factors for STH infections. Conclusions: More than one-third of the school children were infected with at least one STH species and this indicates that STHs are still a health problem among school children in the study area. Therefore, periodic deworming, implementation of different prevention strategies, and health education programs should be regularly applied in the area.

Background: Hematological abnormalities have been associated with an increased risk of disease progression and death in people living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The use of antiretroviral medications can have a positive or negative effect on the hematological disorder. However, little is known about its impact on hematological parameters in antiretroviral-treated patients in Ethiopia, especially in the study area. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at Debre Tabor Comprehensive Specialized Hospital from September to November 2020. A total of 334 HIV-infected patients taking highly active antiretroviral treatment (HAART) at least for 6 months were selected using a simple random sampling technique. Socio-demographic and clinical characteristics of the study subjects were collected using a semi-structured questionnaire. Hematological and immunological parameters were determined using Sysmex kx-21 hematology analyzer and BD FACS count CD4 analyzer, respectively. Statistical analysis was done using SPSS version 20 statistical software. A P-value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: A total of 334 HIV patients were included in this study. The prevalence of anemia, leucopenia, neutropenia, lymphopenia and thrombocytopenia were 37.1%, 22.8%, 8.4%, 10.5% and 17.1% before initiation of HAART and 17.4%, 34.2%, 18.8%, 13.1% and 8.3% after initiation of HAART, respectively. There was a significant difference in total white blood cell (WBC) count, absolute neutrophil count (ANC), red blood cell (RBC) count, hemoglobin value, mean cell volume (MCV), mean cell hemoglobin (MCH), mean cell hemoglobin concentration (MCHC), red cell distribution width (RDW), platelet and CD4+ T cell counts in HIV patients before and after initiation of HAART (P< 0.05). Conclusion: The most common hematological abnormalities observed in this study before and after HAART initiation were anemia, leucopenia, neutropenia, lymphopenia, and thrombocytopenia. However, after beginning HAART, the prevalence of anemia and thrombocytopenia decreased dramatically.

Background. In Ethiopia, 25.3 and 12.3 million school-age children are living in soil-transmitted helminth and schistosomiasis endemic areas, respectively. The school children are at risk for both soil-transmitted helminths and Schistosoma mansoni due to juvenile activities like walking barefoot, playing with dirty objects that might be contaminated with feces, and fetching of unclean water for drinking. There are no data that indicate the status of soil-transmitted helminths and Schistosoma mansoni among children at Hiruy Abaregawi primary school. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of soil-transmitted helminth and Schistosoma mansoni infection among Hiruy Abaregawi primary school children. Methods. A cross-sectional study was conducted from March to April, 2019, at Hiruy Abaregawi primary school, Rural Debre Tabor, North West Ethiopia. A total of 340 students were included in the study. Informed written consent was obtained from the children’s parent. Systematic sampling technique was used to select the children. About 2 grams of stool samples was collected and transported to Debre Tabor University Microbiology and Parasitology Teaching Laboratory to conduct the Kato-Katz technique. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 23. Variables with a p value < 0.05 were considered statistically significant. Results. The prevalence of soil-transmitted helminths and Schistosoma mansoni was 51/340 (15%). Among the identified parasites, Ascaris lumbricoides accounts for 28 (8.2%), hookworm 13 (3.8%), Trichuris trichiura 4 (1.2%), and Schistosoma mansoni 6 (1.8%). In this study, 24 (7%) of Ascaris lumbricoides-, 11 (3.2%) of hookworm-, 4 (1.2%) of Trichuris trichiura-, and 5 (1.5%) of Schistosoma mansoni-infected children showed light infections and no heavy infection in both soil-transmitted helminths and Schistosoma mansoni was observed. Finger nail trimming status, hand washing before eating, availability of toilet at home, educational level of students, and sex of students were factors associated with soil-transmitted helminth infection. Conclusion and Recommendations. In this study, the low prevalence of soil-transmitted helminths and Schistosoma mansoni was observed. The combination of regular mass deworming program and health information on risk factors should be strengthened for the prevention and control of soil-transmitted helminth infection.

Introduction: In Ethiopia, intestinal parasites are common due to poverty, poor personal hygiene, poor environmental sanitation, overcrowding, a lack of safe drinking water, and a lack of knowledge. As a result, evaluating the intestinal parasite morbidity pattern in low-income countries such as Ethiopia is important for designing intestinal parasite intervention programs that minimize the illness burden. Despite the high prevalence of the disease in the Debre Tabor catchment areas, there is a lack of data on the trend of intestinal parasites. As a result, the study's goal was to close the gap on the patterns of intestinal parasite infection for better control and intervention programs. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted from 2017 to 2021 at Debre Tabor comprehensive specialized hospital to determine the trend of intestinal parasite infection. The findings of 7965 saline wet mount stool examinations were collected from the laboratory registration book by trained data collectors over the last five years. The study excluded any data that lacked sociodemographic characteristics and the year of the stool examination. Finally, the data were analyzed by SPSS version 25. Results: The overall prevalence of intestinal parasites during the study period (2017-2021) was 2171 (27.3%) out of 7965 patients. Entamoeba histolytica/dispar (18.6%) was the predominant parasite, followed by Giardia lamblia (5.7%) and Ascaris lumbricoides (1%). Males (28.6%) were infected at a higher rate than females (26.2%) (P = 0.02). The intestinal parasite was reported in all age groups in the area, but the highest and the lowest prevalence were reported in the age groups of above 14 years (27.7%) and under five years (23.4%), respectively (P = 0.03). Conclusion: The finding showed cyclic patterns of fluctuations in the prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections. Therefore, it is important to develop effective prevention and control strategies to prevent the distribution of intestinal parasites.

The aim of this study was to determine the magnitude of Schistosoma mansoni and its associated risk factors in the study area. Of 422 school children, 223 (52.8%) and 199 (47.2%) were males and females, respectively. The Overall prevalence of Schistosoma mansoni infection was 24.9% (105/422). Seventy-five out of 422 (71.4%) of the infected individuals showed light infections. The overall mean intensity of Schistosoma mansoni in the study was 106.16 eggs per gram of stool. Age (p = 0.013), swimming habit (p = 0.001), participating in irrigational activities (p = 0.03) and washing clothes in the river (p = 0.039) were factors associated with Schistosoma mansoni infection.