Journal of Bacteriology & Parasitology

Prevalence of Blastocystis in Argentina: Review of scientific literature (1995-2014)

International Conference on Medical Parasitology and Zoology

October 17-19, 2016 Houston, USA

Nora B Molina, Evangelina Bertucci1, Maria S Grenovero and Juan A Basualdo

Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Argentina
Universidad Nacional de Entre Ríos, Argentina

Posters & Accepted Abstracts: J Bacteriol Parasitol

Abstract:

Blastocystis is considered an emerging parasite with a worldwide distribution. In Argentina, scientific research on this protist has been conducted in spatially limited areas, showing heterogeneity in geographic and population distribution. These publications are scattered among numerous sources of information, making their access and visibility to the scientific community harder. The aim of this study was to realize a review of scientific publications about prevalence of Blastocystis in humans of Argentina between 1995 and 2014. The study was conducted from a quantitative methodology perspective with application of a non-experimental, exploratory, retrospective, cross-sectional design analysis of the information. Electronic databases, virtual libraries and regional and institutional repositories were included (Cochrane, MEDLINE/PubMed, LILACS, SciELO, BIREME, REDALyC, DOAJ, SEDICI, PAHO). Manual search was done in printed journals. In total, 91 papers were obtained, which correspond to 140 data on Blastocystis. These publications surveyed 90831 humans during last 20 years. According to published works, the overall prevalence of Blastocystis in humans was 34.7% with a heterogeneous distribution across the country. In the last decade (2005-2014), the lowest rate of infection of parasite was 28.3% in western region and the highest value was 45.1% in the northeastern of Argentina. The accumulated evidence in recent years has highlighted the importance of Blastocystis on human health. This parasite has been frequently detected in the population of Argentina with elevated prevalence rates in all regions of the country.

Biography :

Nora B Molina is a Specialist in Microbiology and MSc in Clinical Laboratory (UNLP, 2009). Currently she is pursuing PhD in Biomedical Sciences. She has been serving as an Editorial Board Member and Reviewer of international scientific journals. She has participated in several research projects on parasitology and has published original articles, short communications and book chapters.

Email: normolina@gmail.com