[Investigation of intestinal parasites in students of Mustafa Cengiz primary school in Van].

Intestinal parasites still maintain as a major public health problem in our country. In this study, we aimed to investigate the distribution of intestinal parasites in 1st and 2nd grade students of Mustafa Cengiz Primary School, aged between 7-9 and to contribute to the parasitological data of our province. For this purpose, stool examinations of a total of 195 students, including 82 boys and 113 girls, were performed. The results of the microscopic analysis of stool samples revealed one or more parasites in a total of 117 (60%) samples including 45 male students (54.8%) and 72 female students (63.7%). The diagnosed parasites and their ratios in children were; Giardia intestinalis 36.4%, Entamoeba coli 17.9%, Blastocystis hominis 14.4%, Hymenolepis nana 10.8%, Chilomastix mesnili 3.6%, Ascaris lumbricoides 2.6%, Entamoeba hartmanni 1.5%, Trichuris trichiura 1%, Iodamoeba butschlii 0.5%, Retortamonas intestinalis 0.5% ve Endolimax nana 0.5%, respectively. From 117 positive samples for parasites, only one parasite was found in 71 (60.7%), and more than one parasites were found in 46 (39.3%). As a result, parasitic infectious diseases still maintain its importance in our region. We conclude that incidence of parasitic infectious diseases will be reduced with education about personal hygiene and improvement of physical conditions.