Content area
Full Text
1. Introduction
Enterobius vermicularis is a parasite that lives in the colon and rectum of infected humans. While an infected person sleeps, Enterobius vermicularis leave the intestine through the anus and deposit their eggs on the surrounding skin (CDC, 2013a). The most common clinical manifestation of a pinworm infection is an itchy anal region. When the infection is heavy, there can be a secondary bacterial infection due to the irritation and scratching of the anal area. Often the patient will complain of teeth grinding, and insomnia due to disturbed sleep, or even abdominal pain or appendicitis. Infection of the female genital tract has been well reported (CDC, 2013b).
Enterobius vermicularis infections occur worldwide and affect persons of all ages and socio-economic levels. It is the most common worm infection in the USA (CDC, 2013a; Anonymous, 2014). Studies conducted in Turkey report that there were regional differences and that Enterobius vermicularis is among the most common parasitic infections along with Giardia lumbria (Akisu et al., 2000; Kaplan et al., 2002). In Turkey, the distribution of intestinal parasites varies according to region. It varies between 54 and 94 percent in the Black Sea Region, between 55 and 80 percent in Marmara, between 60 and 94 percent in the Southeastern Anatolia Region, and between 50 and 75 percent in the Central Anatolia Region. In rural areas the ratio of people with parasites is as high as 97 percent, whereas this ratio is 1-2 percent in regions with complete infrastructure systems and high socio-economic levels (Taşçi, 1994). In a study investigating intestinal parasites in children in Turkey, cellophane tape samples were taken from 540 children, and Enterobius vermicularis was detected in 16.1 percent of the children (Altınöz et al., 2015). In other studies of the detection of Enterobius vermicularis in children the prevalence of the parasite varied between 7.7 and 28.0 percent (Yapıcı et al., 2008; Tamer et al., 2008; Malatyali et al., 2009; Keskin and Bektaş, 2014; Yentür Doni et al., 2014; Yazgan et al., 2015). In a study of adults between 1988 and 2012, this ratio was reported as 16 percent, and Enterobius vermicularis was found to be the second most common parasite (Kirkoyun Uysal et al., 2013)....