Prevalence of Cryptosporidial Oocysts in Soil of Recreational Parks in Abuja, Nigeria

Idowu Oluwabukola Olufemi¹, Otalu Otalu Jr.^1*, Mohammed Bello¹, Idris Alao Lawal², Jacob Kwada Pajhi Kwaga¹

¹Department of Veterinary Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria.
²Department of Veterinary Parasitology and Entomology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria.

DOI: 10.4236/ojmm.2014.44024                

Abstract

Contamination of soil with cryptosporidial oocysts poses a great health risk to people especially in individuals who are immune-compromised. Exposure to contaminated soil can cause diarrhoea in humans especially in children who play around the parks and may not wash their hands before handling food. The prevalence of cryptosporidial oocyst in soils of 4 recreational parks in Abuja, Nigeria was investigated. Four hundred soil samples were collected from various locations within the recreational parks and examined for the presence of cryptosporidial oocyst using modified acid fast staining technique. In nine (2.3%) of the samples, 8 were from park A and 1 was from park B contained cryptosporidial oocyst. There was significant association (χ² = 20.1; df = 2; p = 0.00004) between prevalence of Cryptosporidium oocysts and level of hygiene of the parks. It was concluded that soil in recreational parks may be a source of infection with Cryptosporidium oocysts.

Keywords

Cryptosporidial Oocyst, Recreational Parks, Abuja, Health Risk

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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