Frecuencia de helmintiasis intestinal y su asociación con deficiencia de hierro y desnutrición en niños de la región occidente de México

SUMMARY Objective.To determine intestinal helminthiasis frequency and its association with malnutrition and iron deficiency. Material and Methods. An analytical cross-over study was carried out on children in the municipality of Comala, Colima, Mexico. Coproparasitoscopic exams in series of three using the Kato-Katz technique were performed in all children. To evaluate the degree of malnutrition, the following anthropometric indices were determined: means and z-scores for weight/height, height/age, weight/age. Severe, moderate and minimal iron deficiency was considered when ferritin was: ≤ 12 ng/ml, 12 to 18 ng/mL and 19 to 24 ng/mL, respectively. Results. 243 children were studied with an average age of 65.3 ± 8.7 months. 60.9% (n = 148) of the children showed a decrease in ferritin levels and 2.5% (n = 6) had anemia. 16% (n = 39) had trichuriasis, 6.9% (n = 17) ascariasis and 5.3% (n = 13) had both parasites. Trichiura infection was associated with declining health (OR 11.0, CI 3.9-30.8; p<0.001) and with iron deficiency, with cutoff points of <24 ng ( OR 2.0, CI 1.0-3.9, p = 0.02) and <18 ng/ dL (OR 2.2, CI 1.2-4.2, p= 0.009). Ascaris infection was not associated with malnutrition or iron deficiency. Conclusions. Trichiura infection was associated with declining health and slight and moderate degrees of iron deficiency.