INTESTINAL PARASITES IN METROPOLITAN TORONTO DAY-CARE-CENTERS

  • 1 January 1984
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 131  (7) , 733-735
Abstract
In 1981, 900 children (aged 3 mo. to 10 yr) and 146 staff attending 22 day-care centers in metropolitan Toronto chosen at random provided a stool specimen in a survey for intestinal parasites. Of the children, 4% to 36% were infected in 20 of 22 centers. Overall, 19% of the children and 14% of the staff had intestinal parasites; 8.6% and 4.0%, respectively, had Dientamoeba fragilis, and 7.8% and 2.0%, respectively, had Giardia lamblia. The highest prevalence of dientamebiasis was in the 7- 10 yr olds, whereas giardiasis was detected most frequently in the 6 yr olds. Infection with intestinal parasites was not correlated with age, sex, duration in the day-care center, dog ownership, travel history, gastrointestinal symptoms or the proportion of children in the day-care center who were born in less developed countries. Immigrant children and children of parents born in industrialized countries (including Canada) were more likely to be infected than were children born in Canada of parents from the developing world. Dientamebiasis was associated with cat ownership. Thus, intestinal protozoa, in particular, D. fragilis and G. lamblia, are endemic in Toronto day-care centers.