Intestinal parasitic infections constitute a global health burden causing clinical
morbidity. Parasitic protozoa and helminthes are responsible for some of the most devastating
and prevalent diseases of human. The study was conducted to determine the prevalence of
intestinal parasites among patients attending Federal Medical Center and Specialist Hospital
Yola. A total of 438 stool specimens was collected randomly from the patients (204 male and
234 female) and examined by saline wet mount procedure and formalin-ether concentration
technique. 155 (35.4%) patients were found to be positive for intestinal parasites giving a
breakdown of male, 70 (34.3%) and female, 85 (36.3%). There was no statistical difference in
the infection between the genders. Ten parasites species, namely
Ascaris lumbricoides
Schistosoma mansoni,
Ancylostoma duodenale,
Strongyloides stercoralis
,
Fasciola hepatica
,
Hymenolepis nana,
Enterobius vermicularis
,
Entamoeba histolytica
,
Entamoeba coli
,
and
Giardia lamblia
were observed in the stool samples. The distribution of species in relation to
gender shows that the male participant had
E. histolytica 45 (54.9%) followed by
A.
lumbricoides 19 (23.2%),
E. coli, 11 (13.4%),
S. mansoni 3 (3.7%),
G. lamblia 2(2.5%),
A.
duodenale 1(1.2%) and
E. vermicularis 1(1.2%). In the female participants,
E. histolytica has
the highest with 43 (44.8%) followed by
A. lumbricoides 20 (20.8%),
E. coli, 9 (9.4%),
S.
mansoni 9 (9.4%),
A. duodenale 7(7.3%),
G. lamblia 3(3.1%),
H. nana 2(0.8%) while
F.
hepatica has the least of 1 (1.0%) The prevalence of intestinal parasites could be attributed to
ignorance, exposure factors and negligence to prevention measures. Public enlightenment
should be embarked upon