Blastocystis hominis microbiota: study of 13255 patients and review of the literature

Abstract

to objectify the number of subjects infested by this parasite in our population. This is a retrospective study carried out over a period of ten years, from January 2009 until December 2018, in the parasitology-mycology laboratory of the Avicenna military hospital in Marrakech. 13,255 subjects were included with at least one parasitological examination of the stool, of which 2,799 examinations were positive, with a simple parasite index of 21.11%. Blastocystis hominis was found in 675 subjects with a specific parasite index of 5.09%, and it was co-associated in 446 subjects with a specific parasite index (IPSp) of 3.36%. The most frequent association was that of Blastocystis hominis and E. histolytica/dispar with a rate of (25.5%) of all polyparasitic patients followed by the combination of Blastocystis hominis and Entamoeba coli (20.8%), the combination of Blastocystis hominis and Endolimax nana with a rate of (16, 1%) and lastly Blastocystis hominis and Entamoeba hartmani (5.3% In patients with polyparasitism, the association of Blastocystis hominis with Entamoeba coli was 20.8%, with Endolimax nana with a rate of 16.1% and finally with Entamoeba hartmani with a prevalence of 5.3%. It is always necessary to insist on strict observance of the rules of prophylaxis against oral-fecal contamination.