Prevalence of Intestinal Parasites among Human Immune Virus Positive Patients Attending Antiretroviral Treatment inWorabeComprehensive Specialized Hospital

Abstract

Background: Intestinal parasites are a major concern in most developing countries where HIV/AIDS cases are concentrated and almost 80% of AIDS patients die of AIDS-related infections. The Humanimmunovirus is one of the greatest challenges facing mankind. An estimated 33 million adults and children are living with the virus globally. Sub-Saharan Africa was the most affected region. People with advanced stages of HIV infection are vulnerable to parasitic diseases that are generally termed parasitic infections. This is because they take advantage of offered by a weakened immune system. Opportunistic infections account for about 80% of deaths among HIV/AIDS patients than the virus itself, and of these, more than 47% happen due to intestinal parasitic infections which usually affect the gastrointestinal system and spread to other body parts. Intestinal parasites are the major cause of morbidity and mortality in many tropical countries including Ethiopia where HIV/AIDS is endemic. Objective This study aimed to determine the prevalence of intestinal parasitic infection in HIV/AIDS patients taking ART in Worabe Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, south-central Ethiopia. Method: -A health facility-based cross-sectional study was conducted among HIV/AIDS patients taking ART at Worabe Comprehensive SpecializedHospital from March to August 2023.Stool samples were collected and wet mount smear was processed with 0.98% physiological saline and intestinal parasites were identified. Data was analyzed usingSPSSSoftware. A Conventional sampling technique was used. Non-probability sampling techniques/convenience sampling / was used as a sampling technique. Our final sample size including 10% of the non-responding rate was 246. Result: Out of 114 study participants 62 (54.4%) individuals were infected with intestinal parasites. The prevalence was high in G.lamlia(23.7%), followed by E. histolytica(28%),S. stercolaris(8.8%),Taenia species (3.5%), and lastly Hookworm species(1.8%