Abstract
Blastocystis hominis found in stool specimens has been the most frequently identified parasite among foreign workers from Southeast Asia in Taiwan since 1992. The prevalence of B. hominis was 14.1% in this study. In their quarantine physical examinations, 121 male Thai workers were examined hematologically and screened for stool parasites using the merthiolate-iodine-formaldehyde concentration method. Hematological values were compared in workers with and without a B. hominis infection. Multiple regressions were used to adjust for age. Those infected with any parasite other than B. hominis were excluded from further analysis. The workers infected with B. hominis had a lower leukocyte count (6.5±0.4x103/μl) than those who were not (7.4±0.2x103/μl). This was mainly caused by a reduced neutrophil count (3.2±0.4 vs 4.2±0.2x103/μl). Hemoglobin (13.9±0.3 vs 14.5±0.1 g/dl) and hematocrit (41.4±0.6 vs 42.9±0.2%) were also reduced in B. hominis-positive workers.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Arribas JM, Fernandez GH, Escalera GI, Pardilla AI, Martin TA, Gonzalez De La Rosa JB (2001) Acute infectious lymphocytosis associated to Giardia lamblia and Blastocystis hominis coinfection An Esp Pediatr 54:518–520
Ayadi A, Bahri I (1999) Dientamoeba fragilis: pathogenic flagellate? Bull Soc Pathol Exot 92:299–301
Barret JP, Dardano AN, Heggers JP, McCauley RL (1999) Infestations and chronic infections in foreign pediatric workers with burns: is there a role for specific protocols? J Burn Care Rehabil 20:482–486
Cheng HH, Huang YH, Huang MJ, Huang WP, Tsai MH, Chen HC, Lan WS (2000) Epidemiological survey of Blastocystis hominis infections among alien laborers in southern Taiwan. 6th Asian-Pacific Congress for Parasitic Zoonoses, Taipei, pp 81–94
Cirioni O, Giacometti A, Drenaggi D, Ancarani F, Scalise G (1999) Prevalence and clinical relevance of Blastocystis hominis in diverse patient cohorts. Eur J Epidemiol 15:389–393
Doyle PW, Helgason MM, Mathias RG, Proctor EM (1990) Epideminology and pathogenicity of Blastocysis hominis. J Clin Microbiol 28:116–121
Essawy MA, Magd LM, Mokhtar G, Rafick MM (1989) IgE level in parasitic diseases before and after specific therapy. J Egypt Soc Parasitol 19:315–326
Guignard S, Arienti H, Freyre L, Lujan H, Rubinstein H (2000) Prevalence of enteroparasites in a residence for children in the Cordoba Province, Argentina. Eur J Epidemiol 16:287–293
Horiki N, Maruyama M, Fujita Y, Yonekura T, Minato S, Kaneda Y (1997) Epidemiologic survey of Blastocystis hominis infection in Japan. Am J Trop Med Hyg 56:370–374
Horiki N, Kaneda Y, Maruyama M, Fujita Y, Tachibana H (1999) Intestinal blockage by carcinoma and Blastocystis hominis infection. Am J Trop Med Hyg 60:400-412
Jelinek T, Peyerl G, Loscher T, von Sonnenburg F, Nothdurft HD (1999) The role of Blastocystis hominis as a possible intestinal pathogen in travellers. J Infect 35:63–66
Kim JM, Jung HC, Im K, Cho YJ, Kim CY (1995) Interleukin-8 gene expression in the human colon epithelial cell line, HT-29, exposed to Entamoeba histolytica. Korean J Parasitol 1995 33:357–364
Logar J, Andlovic A, Poljsak-Prijateli M (1994) Incidence of Blastocystis hominis in workers with diarrhea. J Infect 28:151–154
Long HY, Handschack A, Konig W, Ambrosch A (2001) Blastocystis hominis modulates immune responses and cytokine release in colonic epithelial cells. Parasitol Res 87:1029–1030
Mercado R, Otto JP, Perez M (1999) Seasonal variation of intestinal protozoa infections in outworkers of the north section of Santiago, Chile, 1995–1996. Bol Chil Parasitol 54:41–44
Rajah SH, Suresh KG, Vellayan S, Mak JW, Khairul AA, Init I, Vennila GD, Saminathan R, Ramakrishnan K (1999) Blastocystis in animal handlers. Parasitol Res 85:1032-1033
Rivero-Rodriguez Z, Chourio-Lozano G, Diaz I, Cheng R, Rucson G (2000) Intestinal parasites in school children at a public institution in Maracaibo municipality, Venezuela. Invest Clin 41:37–57
Sadek Y, Fakahany AF, Lashin AH, Salam FA (1997) Intestinal parasites among food-handlers in Qualyobia Governorate, with reference to the pathogenic parasite Blastocystis hominis. J Egypt Soc Parasitol 27:471–478
Sapero JJ, Lawless DK (1942) The MIF stain-preservation technique for the identification of intestinal protozoa. Am J Trop Med Hyg 2:613–619
Simjee AE, Gathiram V, Coovadia HM, Jackson TF, Kiepiela P, Pudifin DJ, Stretton M (1985) Cell-mediated immunity in hepatic amoebiasis. Trans R Soc Trop Med Hyg 79:165–168
Stenzel DJ, Boreham PFL (1996) Blastocystis hominis revisited. Clin Microbiol Rev 9:563–584
Svenungsson B, Lagergren A, Ekwall E, Evengard B, Hedlund KO, Karnell A, Lofdahl S, Svensson L, Weintraub A (2000) Enteropathogens in adult workers with diarrhea and healthy control subjects: a 1-year prospective study in a Swedish clinic for infectious diseases. Clin Infect Dis 30:770–778
Weigel MM, Calle A, Armijos RX, Vega IP, Bayas BV, Montenegro CE (1996) The effect of chronic intestinal parasitic infection on maternal and perinatal outcome. Int J Gynaecol Obstet 52:9–17
Acknowledgements
We wish to thank W.P. Hong for the hematological examinations, M.H. Tsai for typing the results into EXCEL and Yuan's General Hospital for access to the subjects.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Cheng, H.S., Guo, Y.L. & Shin, J.W. Hematological effects of Blastocystis hominis infection in male foreign workers in Taiwan. Parasitol Res 90, 48–51 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-002-0804-3
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-002-0804-3