SOCIO-ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINANTS AND PREVALENCE OF INTESTINAL PARASITOSIS IN CHILDREN FROM A BRAZILIAN RURAL SETTLEMENT
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31243/ei.uta.v10i3.2934.2025Keywords:
intestinal parasites, Entamoeba coli, Giardia lamblia, Ascaris lumbricoides, sanitation, childhoodAbstract
Introduction: Intestinal parasitosis, caused by helminths and protozoa, can lead to various health issues. These infections disproportionately affect underdeveloped and developing countries, particularly in areas with inadequate sanitation. Transmission is more prevalent in some regions, such as peripheral communities, peri-urban zones, and rural settlements, thereby negatively impacting the population’s quality of life. Objectives: To determine the prevalence of intestinal parasites in children aged 0-12 living in a peri-urban/rural settlement and identify associated factors. Methods: A cross-sectional study, which analyzed 142 fecal samples from 50 children. Also, socioeconomic, environmental, and behavioral data from families were collected. Results: A 54% prevalence of intestinal parasites was observed, with Entamoeba coli, Giardia lamblia, and Ascaris lumbricoides being the most common, with monoparasitism occurring in 48%. All families had income class E. Ninety-four percent of the children's water source was from an artisanal well (without chlorination). 94% of the children consumed raw vegetables; 66% of children used water alone to clean their vegetables, and 63% of these children had intestinal parasitosis. The adapted Ecomapa model allows for a qualitative representation of the relationship between socioenvironmental determinants and the presence of parasites. Conclusions: The study highlights the multifactorial causes of the high prevalence of intestinal parasites in children living in settlements, requiring analysis at various levels. Effective policy action at the federal, state, and municipal levels is crucial to ensure adequate sanitation, healthcare, and education for this vulnerable group, particularly children, who require comprehensive care, quality services, and promotion of healthy habits to support their growth and development.
References
World health statistics 2024: monitoring health for the SDGs, Sustainable Development Goals. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2024. Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO. Available in: https://iris.who.int/bitstream/handle/10665/376869/9789240094703-eng.pdf
Lima, ECS, Oliveira HMBF, Leon CMP, Barbosa VSA. Prevalência de parasitoses intestinais em usuários de um hospital universitário, Santa Cruz-RN, Brasil. Rev. Aten. Saúde. 2020; 18(63): 21-30. Available in: https://seer.uscs.edu.br/index.php/revista_ciencias_saude/article/view/6218
Póvoa HCC, Iorio NLPP, Fontão MG, Souza MP, de Sonza, P A, Kaufmann VGV, Nogueira JM da R (2025). Galleria mellonella como modelo experimental no estudo de coinfecções microbianas. Brazilian Journal of Animal and Environmental Research, 8(1), e78112. DOI: https://doi.org/10.34188/bjaerv8n1-119
Niedermaier A, Gozdziejewski CE, Simones LA, Savi DC. Incidência de parasitoses em uma comunidade quilombola de Joinville, Santa Catarina. Revista Brasileira de Análises Clínicas, 2022; 54 (2): 132–138. Available in: https://www.rbac.org.br/artigos/incidencia-de-parasitoses-em-uma-comunidade-quilombola-de-joinville-santa-catarina/
5. Zagui GS, Fregonesi BM, Silva TV, Machado CS, Machado GP, Julião FC, Tonani KAA, Segura-Muñoz SI. Adaptação do Ecomapa proposto no Modelo Calgary para avaliação socioambiental de parasitoses intestinais em crianças de creches filantrópicas. Rev Inst Adolfo Lutz. São Paulo, 2017;76:e1723. Available in: https://periodicos.saude.sp.gov.br/index.php/RIAL/article/view/33540/32372
Štrkolcová G, Fiľakovská Bobáková D, Kaduková M, Schreiberová A, Klein D, Halán M, Urbančíková I. Intestinal parasitic infections in children from marginalized Roma communities: prevalence and risk factors. BMC Infect Dis 2024: 24: 596. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12879-024-09500-z
BRASIL. Portaria/INCRA/P/Nº 477, de 04 de novembro de 1999. Criar a modalidade de Projeto de
Desenvolvimento Sustentável – PDS. Available in: https://www.gov.br/incra/pt-br/centrais-de-conteudos/legislacao/indice_legislacao_agraria.pdf
Farias MHCS, Carvalho AC, Beltrão NES. O projeto de desenvolvimento sustentável e a construção de novas formas de assentamentos no estado do Pará. XVI SEUR, 2020. Available in: https://periodicos.ufpel.edu.br/ojs2/index.php/seur/article/view/20091
Fregonesi BM, Suzuki MN, Machado CS, Tonani, KAA, Fernandes, APM, Monroe A.A, Cervi MC, Segura-Muñoz SI. Emergent and re-emergent parasites in HIV-infected children: immunological and socio-environmental conditions that are involved in the transmission of Giardia spp. and Cryptosporidium spp. Revista da Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical, 2015 48(6):753-758. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/0037-8682-0119-2015
Mihaliuc DB de M, Silva BLM, Fonseca LHB da, Santos WS. O uso do Ecomapa na saúde como ferramenta pedagógica: um relato de experiência. Revista Eletrônica Acervo Saúde, 2021;13(10): e8636. DOI: https://doi.org/10.25248/reas.e8636.2021
Teixeira PA, Fantinatti M, Gonçalves MP, Silva JS. Parasitoses intestinais e saneamento básico no Brasil: estudo de revisão integrativa. Brazilian Journal of Development, 2020, 6(5): 22867–22890. DOI: https://doi.org/10.34117/bjdv6n5-006
Da Silva EP, Carvalho WRC, Firmo WDCA. Estudo comparativo da ocorrência de parasitoses intestinais em crianças de duas comunidades da zona rural de Paulo Ramos – MA, Brasil. Uningá Review, 2016;27(2). Available in: https://revista.uninga.br/uningareviews/article/view/1824
Alves FV, Souza AC, Guimaraes HR, Amorin ACS, Cruz MA, Santos BS, Borges EP, Trindade RA, Melo ACFL. Aspectos epidemiológicos das enteroparasitoses em crianças domiciliadas em um assentamento rural no nordeste brasileiro. Revista Eletrônica Acervo Saúde, 2014. 6(3): 666-676. Available in: https://acervomais.com.br/index.php/saude/article/view/7607/4652
de Paula Sá F. Giardíase e a sua relevância na saúde pública. Pubvet [Internet]. 3º de junho de 2021 [citado 4º de julho de 2025];15(06). Available in: http://ojs.pubvet.com.br/index.php/revista/article/view/534
Domingues PHF, de Araújo AT, Silva IP, Soares AV, Alves RCF, Vidal LAAA, Araújo PC. Prevalence and factors associated with intestinal parasitosis in children from an urban slum in Brazil: a cross-sectional study. Rev Paul Pediatr. 2025 (43): e2024132 2025. Available in: https://www.scielo.br/j/rpp/a/SLpj55qZqMwGcZsk3FnLnPm/?format=pdf&lang=en
Harvey TV, Tang AM, Paixao Sevá A, Santos CA, Carvalho SMS, Rocha CMBM, Oliveira BCM, Albuquerque GR. Enteric parasitic infections in children and dogs in resource-poor communities in northeastern Brazil: Identifying priority prevention and control areas. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2020;14 (6): e0008378. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0008378
Portal TP, Pedlowski A, Almeida CMS, Canela MC. An integrated assessment of water quality in a land reform settlement in northern Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil. Heliyon, 2019; 5(3) e01295. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2019.e01295
Nguyen AT, Grembi JA, Riviere M, Heitmann GB, Hutson WD, Athni TS, Patil A, Ercumen A, Lin A, Crider Y, Mertens A, Unicomb L, Rahman M, Luby SP, Arnold BF, Benjamin-Chung J. Influence of Temperature and Precipitation on the Effectiveness of Water, Sanitation, and Handwashing Interventions against Childhood Diarrheal Disease in Rural Bangladesh: A Reanalysis of the WASH Benefits Bangladesh Trial. Environmental Health Perspectives 2024; 132(4): e047006. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP13807
Nakano NM, Meira GS, Rodrigues BF, Zagui GS, Machado GP, Silva TS, Torre GCD, Santos DV, Leipner MLP, Machado CS, Meschede MSC, Segura-Muñoz SI. Restrições sanitárias relacionadas à segurança hídrica e infraestrutura socioambiental em um Assentamento Rural no Estado de São Paulo. Enferm Bras. 2022; 21(6):740-752. DOI: https://doi.org/10.33233/eb.v21i6.5279
Dornfeld CB, Leite MA, Maróstica MS, Queiroz TV, Ferreira EMS, Martins FL. Saneamento básico e questões ambientais em assentamento rural no noroeste paulista. Saúde e meio ambiente: Revista Interdisciplinar. 2018; 7(2):03-21. DOI: https://doi.org/10.24302/sma.v7i2.1551
Gomes CRD, Hansen E. Análise comparativa entre estações compactas e convencionais para o tratamento de efluentes no município de Dois Irmãos, RS. Revista Tecnologia e Tendências, 2019; 10(2): 121-136. DOI: https://doi.org/10.25112/rtt.v10i2.1980
IBGE. Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística. Pesquisa Nacional por Amostra de Domicílios Contínua - PNAD Contínua. Características gerais dos domicílios e dos moradores, 2023. Available in: https://biblioteca.ibge.gov.br/visualizacao/livros/liv102158_informativo.pdf
Silva DE, Cordeiro J, Calazans GM, Vieira ED, Pereira SLCS. Análise da eficiência da filtração lenta para o tratamento de água de uma nascente situada na zona rural de Passabém – MG. Research, Society and Development; 2018; 7(6):01-25. DOI: https://doi.org/10.17648/rsd-v7i6.235
Ahmed Ali, U. Effect of Indiscriminate Defaecation and Disposal of Faecal Material on Peri-Urban Cultivated Crops Potentials to Expose Parasites to Community. Cent Asian J Environ Sci Technol Innov, 2020; 1(3): 130-133. DOI: 10.22034/CAJESTI.2020.03.01
Oliveira HCS, Cardoso SRA. Enteroparasitoses mais frequentes na faixa etária de 0 a 12 anos de idade: Uma revisão integrativa da literatura. Scientia Generalis, 2024; 5(2): 265–275. DOI: https://doi.org/10.22289/sg.V5N2A28.
Esmeraldo GROV, de Oliveira LD, Esmeraldo Filho CE, Queiroz DM. Tensão entre o modelo biomédico e a estratégia saúde da família: a visão dos trabalhadores de saúde. Rev. APS, 2017; 20(1):98-106. DOI: http://doi.org/10.34019/1809-8363.2017.v20.15786
Raimundo JS, Silva R. B. Reflexões acerca do predomínio do modelo biomédico no contexto da Atenção Básica de Saúde no Brasil. Revista Mosaico, 2020; 11(2): 109-116. DOI: https://doi.org/10.21727/rm.v11i2.2184
Bayma JC, Pessoa ACN, Valerio FR, Lima SF, Rodrigues AO, Castro CB, Andrade CSGC, Jesus WN, Santos RP, Borges RS, Lima AF, Neto PADM, Tobias LMC, Silva BW, Ribeiro IP. Epidemiologia de doenças infecciosas: estratégias de prevenção e controle em saúde coletiva. Rev FT, 2024 (28). DOI: http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.11507428
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Enfermería Investiga
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work.
