Publication Date
3-6-2024
Journal
American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
DOI
10.4269/ajtmh.23-0712
PMID
38350146
PMCID
PMC10919181
PubMedCentral® Posted Date
2-13-2024
PubMedCentral® Full Text Version
Post-print
Published Open-Access
yes
Keywords
Animals, Humans, Parasites, Helminths, Soil, Prevalence, Environment, Feces
Abstract
The amounts of parasite DNA in soil samples from different playgrounds and other public areas can help identify areas of possible microbe transmission and give indications of the possible occurrence of parasite infection in nearby communities. We collected 207 soil samples from parks in Paiute indigenous tribal areas in southwestern Utah and from the higher income city of St. George, Utah, and tested them for 11 parasites that can cause human disease. Molecular tests revealed an elevated odds ratio (OR) of 3.072 (range, 1.114-8.065) for detecting the helminth Trichuris trichiura and an elevated OR of 3.036 (range, 1.101-7.966) for any protozoa (not including Acanthamoeba) in the tribal land playgrounds compared with St. George parks. These findings support previous studies showing that areas in lower socioeconomic communities, especially marginalized communities, tend to have more parasites in the soil, which may lead to higher disease prevalence rates.
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