Intestinal parasitic infection and associated symptoms in children attending day care centres in Trujillo, Venezuela.

Objectives: To examine the presence of intestinal protozoan and helminth infections and their association with clinical signs and symptoms in children in Trujillo, Venezuela.

Methods: Conventional microscopic methods (thick-smear, saline and iodine solutions) were used to identify parasites in stool samples of 301 children attending day care centres. A subgroup of 45 children was evaluated clinically and parasitologically five times during a 1-month period using conventional methods and the Kinyoun acid-fast stain for Cryptosporidium identification.