Prevalence and risk factors of soil transmitted helminthiasis in some research-naïve communities in Ekiti State, Southwestern Nigeria: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

Soil-transmitted helminthiasis (STH) remains one of the most prevalent neglected tropical diseases in sub-Saharan Africa, with Nigeria bearing the highest burden globally. In this study, we assessed the prevalence of STH infection and associated risk factors in five research-naïve communities in Ekiti State, Nigeria. Fresh stool samples were processed using ether concentration method. Epidemiological data on sociodemographic characteristics, access to water and sanitation (WASH) facilities, knowledge of STH, and hygiene practices were collected and analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics in R software, with statistical significance set at p ≤ 0.05. Of the 228 participants were enrolled, majority were female (156; 68.4%), aged ≥ 45 years (79.4%) and 142 provided stool samples for parasitological analysis. An overall prevalence of 31.7% was recorded, with 30.3% and 2.8% species prevalence for Ascaris lumbricoides and hookworm respectively. Most participants (89.5%) reported daily access to multiple water sources, with rainwater (158; 69.2%) and protected dug wells (154; 67.5%) being the most used. Approximately one-third of participants (34.2%) had no access to toilet facilities, 57% had heard of STH and 62.0% practices open defecation. The use of handpump boreholes was associated with higher odds of infection compared with piped-borne water (AOR = 2.78; 95% CI: 1.09–7.10; p = 0.033), while participants with prior knowledge of STH had lower odds (AOR = 0.28; 95% CI: 0.09–0.90; p = 0.032). The findings from this study provide evidence on the epidemiology of STH among adult populations in Ekiti State and highlight persistent gaps in WASH access.