Chapter IV

PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA

This chapter presents, analyzes and interprets the data gathered in this study. The
various results are presented in the succeeding tables with corresponding discussions and
explanations.

Age and Gender of the study population

Table 1 shows the distribution of the participants in terms of the following
variables: age and gender. This study comprises pre-school children with ages ranging
from three to five years old. The participants are gathered from three different pre-school
day care centers in Bawing, General Santos City.
Table 1. Age and Gender of the Participants
VARIABLE

FREQUENCY

PERENTAGE( n=38)
3.71

Age
3 y.o.

15

39.5

4 y.o.

19

50

5 y.o.

10.5

Male

16

42.11

Female

22

57.89

Gender

Table 1 shows the total participants of the study are 38.

According to the

statistics released by UNESCO for the year 2008, there are more male enrollees than
female enrollees in preschool here in the country. In the case of our study, majority of the
participants are female (57.89%) while 42.11 % of the participants of the study are male.
The overall mean of the ages of the preschool children is 3.7. Fifteen (39.5%) of the

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participants are 3 years old while 19 (50%) are 4 years old and 4 (10.5%) of the
participants are 5 years old.

Prevalence of Helminth Infection

The table shows the prevalence of the different soil transmitted helminths
infecting the preschool children of Bawing, General Santos City. Based on Table 2, the
most prevalent helminth infecting the pre-school children are the Ascaris lumbricoides
(23.7%) and Trichuris trichiura (23.7%).
Table 2. Prevalence of Soil Transmitted Helminth Infection
Soil Transmitted Helminth
(n=38)

Number of infected

Prevalence (%)

children

Ascaris lumbricoides

23.7%

Trichuris trichiura

23.7%

Hookworm

Others

Table 2 shows the prevalence of helminth infection among the preschool children
of Bawing. The result shows no prevalence of hookworm infection. On the other hand,
both the Ascaris lumbricoides and Trichuris trichiura were present on the stool
specimens of the participants having a prevalence of 23.7%.
Prevalence is the proportion of individuals in a population having a disease or
characteristic. According to the Department of Health (2010), the three major causes of
intestinal infection in the Philippines are caused by the Ascaris lumbricoides, Trichuris
trichiura and Hookworm. On the study conducted by Belizario et al. (2011), higher
prevalence for Trichuris trichiura with 94.4% followed by Ascaris lumbricoides with

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84.1% are concluded. He further explained that the prevalence is due to re-infection of
the helminthes. The hand to mouth mode of transmission of Acaris lumbricoides which is
the same with Trichuris trichiura could also cause re-infection and co-infection of both
parasites to a child (Belizario et al. 2004). The absence of hookworm infection could be
attributed to the characteristic of the hookworm eggs to disintegrate after smear
preparation (Belizario et al.2009).
The result also shows that the de-worming program of the barangay health center
was effective since majority of the respondents were de-wormed last May, 2014. Among
the 38 specimens that were being studied only 10 were positive for helminth infection.
Recurrence of the infection after de-worming may be caused by poor hygiene among
those preschool children who resulted positive (Hotez et al. 2008). The high rate of coinfection between Ascaris lumbricoides and Trichuris trichiura is due to the fact that the
mode of transmission for both helminths are the same which is ingestion of contaminated
foods or not properly cooked foods (Belizario et al. 2011).

Intensity of Helminth Infection

Intensity of infection is a measure of the number of worms infecting an individual
or a community. The table below shows the intensity result of STH infection among the
preschool children in Bawing.

Table 3. Infection intensity profile for STH among preschool children in Bawing
Infection intensity profile n (%)
Intestinal Helminths

Light

Moderate Heavy

Ascaris lumbricoides (n=9) 1 (11.1%) 5 (55.6%) 3 (33.3%)

Trichuris trichiura (n=9)

2 (22.2%) 5 (55.6%) 2 (22.2%)

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Table 3 shows the intensity of the STH infection among the preschool children of
Bawing. The participants have different infection intensity. The intensity of individual
parasites was interpreted as light, moderate and heavy infection which is based on the
World Health Organization guidelines: A. lumbricoides [light (1 4,999 epg), moderate
(5,000 - 49,999 epg), heavy ( 50,000 epg); T. trichiura [light (1 999 epg), moderate
(1,000 9,999 epg), heavy ( 10,000 epg); hookworm spp. [light (1 1,999 epg),
moderate (2,000 3,999 epg), heavy ( 4,000 epg)]. The result shows that one (11.1%)
participant has light infection intensity for Ascaris lumbricoides while Trichuris trichiura
has two (22.2%) participants having such infection intensity. Five (55.6%) participants
for both helminths showed moderate infection intensity. Heavy infection intensity was
observed on both helmints, with 3 (33.3%) participants for Ascaris lumbricoides and 2
(22.2%) participants for Trichuris trichiura.
The results above showed that the infection of intensity among the preschool
children ranges from light to moderate to heavy. Majority of the participants in the study
have moderate infection. There are different factors that may affect the intensity of the
STH infection. According to Hotez et al. (2008) and Lim et al. (2009), the risk of
infection intensity among individuals is particularly heightened by poor sanitation and
unhygienic practices including indiscriminate defecation, lack of footwear and other
health-related factors.
People harboring light intensity of helminth infection usually shows no
symptoms. Moderate infection causes stunted growth to the infected individuals. On the
other hand, heavy infection of helminth infection can cause a range of symptoms such as
diarrhea, abdominal pain, general malaise and weakness, and impaired cognitive and
physical development (WHO, 2014).

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Species of Helminth Infecting Preschool Children

There are different species of soil transmitted helminths that infects the humans.
Based on the results shown on table 2, the type of helminth that infects the preschool
children in Bawing is both the Ascaris lumbricoides and Trichuris trichiura.
Ascaris lumbricoides and Trichuris trichiura are both from the phylum nematoda
or commonly known as roundworms. The infections caused by these two helminths are
called Ascariasis and Trichuriasis. Ascariasis is commonly known as the "large
roundworm" infection and trichuriasis as "whip worm" infection (US Food and Drug
Administration, 2012).
The mode of transmission for both helminths is thru fecal- oral route wherein the
infected person ingests food with dirty hands or consuming vegetables and fruits not
cooked, washed or peeled. Once the fertile or infective eggs of Ascaris lumbricoides and
Trichuris trichiura are ingested and reach the intestine, it hatch and release larvae. Larvae
of T. trichiura mature and become adult worms. As for A. lumbricoides, the larvae are
carried to the lungs, where they mature, through portal and systemic circulation. When
these are swallowed, it reaches the intestines where they develop into adult worms. Adult
female of both helminths oviposit 2 months after infection. These helminths are found
mainly in warm and moist environments (CDC, 2013).
People infected with Ascaris often show no symptoms at all. Symptoms include
abdominal discomfort. Heavy infections can cause intestinal blockage and impair growth
in children. Other symptoms such as cough are due to migration of the worms through the
body. Those people who are infected with light infection of Trichuriasis are
asymptomatic. Those with heavy symptoms can experience frequent, painful passage of
stool that contains a mixture of mucus, water, and blood. Rectal prolapse can also occur
(CDC, 2013).