Abstract
Objective: This study aimed to describe the epidemiological aspects of enteroparasitosis in children living in a rural settlement in the northeastern of Brazil, also correlating them with possible risk factors. Methods: Parasitological examinations were performed on fifty stool samples from children ageing up to thirteen years, both sexes, and half of them had subungual extracts also analyzed. Biometric evaluations were performed by measuring of height and body mass. Parents answered a questionnaire about hygienic-sanitary habits. Stool samples were examined by method of Hoffman. Sediments of ethereal subungual extracts were analyzed under optical microscopy after centrifugation. Fischer's exact and chi-square tests were applied to assess significant association (p≤0.05). Results: The global prevalence of intestinal parasites was 68% for stool samples and 8% for subungual extracts. No significant associations were found between the hygienicsanitary information and the positivity of samples (p>0.05). Indexes (weight x height) below WHO average recommendations were observed in 80% and 93% of female and male children, respectively. Conclusion: These results revealed high prevalence of enteroparasitosis in the studied individuals.