Detection of Urinary Analytes due to Schistosoma haematobium Infection among School Children for Possible Application in Screening for Urinary Schistosomiasis

Abstract

Study’s Novelty/Excerpt

• This study introduces an approach for the rapid screening and diagnosis of urinary schistosomiasis using urinalysis in remote communities, where advanced diagnostic techniques are often unavailable.
• By analyzing 600 school children across six Local Government Areas in Kaduna State, Nigeria, the research highlights significant associations between urinary schistosomiasis and specific urinalysis indicators, such as leukocytes, proteinuria, and micro-hematuria.
• This method not only demonstrates the feasibility of immediate treatment initiation but also underscores the potential for preventing the chronicity and further community spread of the disease, addressing a critical gap in current public health strategies for rural settings.

Full Abstract

Urinary schistosomiasis is a disease that has persisted for a long time among children in Nigeria and other African countries. The persistence of schistosomiasis in people living in rural communities is attributed to the abundance of unsafe water bodies where both children and adults engage in activities such as irrigation, bathing, fishing, washing, or fetching water for domestic use. The lack of adequate community-based screening and treatment of infected cases has contributed to the continuous spread of schistosomiasis from endemic communities to new areas. Urinalysis can serve as a rapid method for screening for urinary schistosomiasis among populations in remote locations, enabling immediate treatment and the prevention of its transmission. In this study, 600 school children who gave their consent were enrolled across six Local Government Areas in Kaduna State, Nigeria. A fresh 10mL urine sample was collected from each subject, and eleven analytes were immediately determined upon submission using urine reagent test strips (SG11100-Uric 11V, Guilin Zhonghui Technology Co., Ltd, China). The urine samples underwent centrifugation at 3000 revolutions per minute for 5 minutes, and the sediment from each sample was examined microscopically for Schistosoma haematobium eggs. The data were analyzed statistically at a 95% confidence interval using IBM SPSS Version 23. The overall prevalence of urinary schistosomiasis among the children in the six LGAs of Kaduna State was 6.8%, with heavy infections at 2.2% and light infections at 4.7%. Significant associations were found between urinary schistosomiasis and the presence of leukocytes (18.5%, χ²=47.596, df=1, P=0.000, OR=8.822), proteinuria (23.1%, χ²=17.287, df=1, P=0.000, OR=4.959), and micro-hematuria (49.3%, χ²=213.184, df=1, P=0.000, OR=63.695). This study demonstrates that urinalysis can be effectively utilized for screening urinary schistosomiasis in remote communities where advanced techniques like microscopy may not be available, facilitating prompt treatment initiation. Therefore, early detection and treatment are crucial in preventing the chronicity and community spread of the disease.