0000000000037798
AUTHOR
Pavitra Pillay
Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction for Detection of Schistosoma DNA in Small-Volume Urine Samples Reflects Focal Distribution of Urogenital Schistosomiasis in Primary School Girls in KwaZulu Natal, South Africa
Schistosoma haematobium eggs and Schistosoma DNA levels were measured in urine samples from 708 girls recruited from 18 randomly sampled primary schools in South Africa. Microscopic analysis of two 10-mL urine subsamples collected on three consecutive days confirmed high day-to-day variation; 103 (14.5%) girls had positive results at all six examinations, and at least one positive sample was seen in 225 (31.8%) girls. Schistosoma-specific DNA, which was measured in a 200-μL urine subsample by using real-time polymerase chain reaction, was detected in 180 (25.4%) cases, and levels of DNA corresponded significantly with average urine egg excretion. In concordance with microscopic results, pol…
Mapping schistosoma haematobium for novel interventions against female genital schistosomiasis and associated HIV risk in kwazulu-natal, South Africa
Abstract.Women with female genital schistosomiasis (FGS) have been found to have genital symptoms and a three-fold higher risk of HIV infection. Despite WHO recommendations, regular antischistosomal mass drug administration (MDA) has not yet been implemented in South Africa possibly because of the lack of updated epidemiological data. To provide data for future prevention efforts against FGS and HIV, this study explored Schistosoma haematobium prevalence in girls and young women and the effects of antischistosomal MDA, respectively. Urinary schistosomiasis and genital symptoms were investigated in 70 randomly selected secondary schools in three districts within KwaZulu-Natal and 18 primary …
Re: Al-Baghdadi O, Samarasinghe A, Wissa I. 2014. Cervical schistosomiasis. Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology 34:206
Dear Sir,We were pleased to read the recent case report on cervical schistosomiasis (Al-Baghdadi et al. 2014). We would like to add a few important points illustrated by a case presenting with cerv...
Evaluating diagnostic indicators of urogenital Schistosoma haematobium infection in young women: A cross sectional study in rural South Africa
BackgroundUrine microscopy is the standard diagnostic method for urogenital S. haematobium infection. However, this may lead to under-diagnosis of urogenital schistosomiasis, as the disease may present itself with genital symptoms in the absence of ova in the urine. Currently there is no single reliable and affordable diagnostic method to diagnose the full spectrum of urogenital S. haematobium infection. In this study we explore the classic indicators in the diagnosis of urogenital S. haematobium infection, with focus on young women.MethodsIn a cross-sectional study of 1237 sexually active young women in rural South Africa, we assessed four diagnostic indicators of urogenital S. haematobium…