Giardia lamblia Carriage in Israeli Bedouin Infants: Risk Factors and Consequences

• Published in: Clinical infectious diseases Vol. 30; no. 3; pp. 419 - 424
• Main Authors: Fraser, Drora, Bilenko, Natalya, Deckelbaum, Richard J., Dagan, Ron, El-On, Joseph, Naggan, Lechaim
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Chicago, IL The University of Chicago Press 01-03-2000; University of Chicago Press
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Amibiasis; Animals; Arabs; Biological and medical sciences; Carrier State - ethnology; Carrier State - parasitology; Child growth; Children; Clinical Articles; Diarrhea; Diarrhea - parasitology; Diseases; Feces - parasitology; Female; Giardia lamblia; Giardia lamblia - isolation & purification; Giardiasis; Giardiasis - ethnology; Giardiasis - parasitology; Giardiasis - pathology; Homes; Human protozoal diseases; Humans; Infant; Infant, Newborn; Infants; Infections; Infectious diseases; Israel; Israel - epidemiology; Medical sciences; Miscellaneous; Parasitic diseases; Predisposing factors; Protozoal diseases; Risk Factors; Tropical medicine; Z score; Asia; Israel; Endocrinopathy; Human; Protozoa; Protozoal disease; Pathophysiology; Diseases of the osteoarticular system; Diarrhea; Diplomonadida; Parasitosis; Growth defect; Infection; Giardia lamblia; Giardiasis; Risk factor; Digestive diseases; Intestinal disease; Child
• ISSN: 1058-4838; 1537-6591
• DOI: 10.1086/313722

Giardiasis is a common protozoan infection, with varying clinical manifestations. We investigated the associations between Giardia lamblia carriage and environmental, family, illness, and growth characteristics. Bedouin infants (n=234) were followed from birth to age 18–23 months. At monthly home visits, stool samples were obtained, history of illness was determined, and an environmental assessment was done. The comparisons presented are between 4 groups defined by length of carriage of G. lamblia. Study children had a mean ±SD of 4.1±2.9 diarrhea episodes. No illness, environmental, or family characteristics were associated with length of carriage. Significant differences were found in weight-for-age and weight-for-height z scores between the never-positive-for-G. lamblia group and all other carriage groups combined. Faltering growth was shown to be subsequent to G. lamblia infection rather than preceding it. Our findings confirm that G. lamblia carriage is not associated with diarrhea. However, the effect on growth deserves further investigation.