Bafa TA, Sherif EM, Hantalo AH, Woldeamanuel GG. Magnitude of enteropathogens and associated factors among apparently healthy food handlers at Wolkite University Student's Cafeteria, Southern Ethiopia.
BMC Res Notes 2019;
12:567. [PMID:
31511045 PMCID:
PMC6737660 DOI:
10.1186/s13104-019-4599-z]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2019] [Accepted: 08/31/2019] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Objective
The study aimed to assess enteropathogens carriage rate and risk factors among apparently healthy food handlers at Wolkite University cafeteria, Southern Ethiopia.
Results
Cross-sectional study was conducted among 170 food handlers to collect socio-demographic and related data by using structured questionnaires. Stool samples were collected and subjected to microscopic examination and cultured to determine intestinal parasites. Among the total study participants, 66% of them were found to be carriers of enteropathogens: bacteria (Salmonella typhi, Shigella species), and intestinal parasites (Ascaris lumbricoides,Taenia species, Giardia lamblia, Entameoba histolytica/dispar, Enterobius vermicularis, Hook worm and Trichuris trichiura). All Salmonella and Shigella isolates were sensitive to ceftriaxone, ciprofloxacin, and gentamicin. A significant association was found between hand washing practice before food preparation and isolated pathogens [p = 0.013]. A significant proportion of food handlers were found to be carriers of pathogens which require a periodic screening and antibiotic therapy monitoring.
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