Title
Prevalence and risk factors for human cystic echinococcosis in the Cusco region of the Peruvian highlands diagnosed using focused abdominal ultrasound
Date Issued
01 January 2017
Access level
open access
Resource Type
journal article
Publisher(s)
American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
Abstract
Latin America is among the highly endemic regions for cystic echinococcosis (CE). In Peru, an estimated 1,139 disability-adjusted life years are lost annually from surgical treatment of CE. This is comparable with the combined total for Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, and Chile. The prevalence of human infection has been investigated in the central Peruvian Andes, but there are no community-based screening data from other regions of Peru. We carried out a population survey in January 2015 using abdominal ultrasound to estimate the prevalence of abdominal CE in the Canas and Canchis provinces, in the Cusco region of Peru. Among 1,351 subjects screened, 41 (3%) had CE. There was significant variation between communities with similar socioeconomic features in a small geographical area. A history of CE was reported by 4.1% of the screened subjects, among whom 30.3% still had CE on ultrasound. Among patients reporting previous CE treatment, 14.9% had CE in active stages. Limited education, community of residence, and knowing people with CE in the community were associated with CE. These results demonstrate a significant burden of CE in the region and suggest the need for further investigations, control activities, and optimization of clinical management for CE in this area.
Start page
1472
End page
1477
Volume
96
Issue
6
Language
English
OCDE Knowledge area
Epidemiología
Scopus EID
2-s2.0-85020389708
PubMed ID
Source
American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
Resource of which it is part
American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
ISSN of the container
00029637
Sources of information: Directorio de Producción Científica Scopus