Abstract

BACKGROUND: Intestinal parasitic infections are the one of the most common health problems in developing countries. OBJECTIVE: A number of patients die annually due to complications caused by these parasites.Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the rate and type of parasitic infections, determine the factors affecting them in Ilam city and also provide strategies to prevent them.In this descriptive cross-sectional study conducted in one of the Ilam labs in 2016, 417 stool specimens were randomly collected. All specimens were examined using direct and ethanol formaldehyde.Suspect specimens were examined using Trichrom staining. Demographic information was also recorded in a questionnaire, and finally the results were analyzed using statistical software SPSS 20.The data were then compared with Chi-square test. RESULTS: Out of the 417 patients examined, 59 (14.1) were infected with intestinal parasites. The type of parasitic infection in 9.4 was Blastocystis hominis, 3.6 Entamoeba coli, 0.5 Entamoeba histolytica, 0.5 Giardia and 0.2 Trichomonas hominis. CONCLUSION: Despite the improvement of public health, parasitic infections are still considered as one of the health problems in the city of Ilam. Therefore, proper planning, public health education, raising the level of health in the area and the provision of safe drinking water are some of the ways to reduce parasitic infections in the region.