Seroprevalence of Hepatitis A Virus, Hepatitis E Virus, and in Rural Communities of the Bolivian Chaco, 2013.

In the Bolivian Chaco, south-east of Bolivia, studies conducted over the past three decades reported hepatitis A virus (HAV) and seroprevalences above 90% and 60%, respectively. Hepatitis E virus (HEV) prevalence was previously found to be 6-7% but is probably an underestimate because of the poor sensitivity of the assays used. In November 2013, we conducted a cross-sectional study of 263 healthy volunteers from two rural communities of the Bolivian Chaco, aiming to reassess HAV, HEV, and seroprevalence 10-20 years following the previous surveys.

Seroepidemiological trend of strongyloidiasis in the Bolivian Chaco (1987-2013) in the absence of disease-specific control measures.

Objectives: The prevalence of Strongyloides stercoralis infections is grossly underestimated because infections go mostly undetected, although they can persist for a lifetime due to the auto-infective cycle. In the Bolivian Chaco, the prevalence of soil-transmitted nematodes dropped dramatically in the past 25 years, but the mebendazole used for preventive chemotherapy has no effect on S. stercoralis.