Research on Parasitic Infections in the PH

• Soil-transmitted helminth infections (STHs) affect two billion people worldwide, equating to approximately one-third of the world's population.
• Ascaris lumbricoides, Trichuris trichiura, and the hookworms Necator americanus and Ancylostoma duodenale - common STHs in the Philippines
• Necator americanus has a pair of ventral cutting plates.
• Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) are found mainly among the poorest populations of the world, with more than 1 billion people affected worldwide.
• Control is the reduction of disease incidence, prevalence, morbidity, and mortality.
• Elimination is the reduction to zero of the incidence of infection.
• Eradication is the permanent reduction to zero.
• Preventive chemotherapy is the large-scale use of safe, single-dose medicine. It involves the availability of drugs and aims to reduce morbidity and interrupt parasite transmission.
• Intensive disease management involves better access to the healthcare system through improved case detection and clinical management of the disease. It aims to prevent mortality, reduce morbidity, and interrupt parasite transmission.
• Vector and intermediate host control aim to improve the efficiency and sustainability of disease control measures against vector-borne diseases including the administration of parasites.
• The provision of safe water, sanitation, and hygiene is an important control strategy as millions of people lack access to safe drinking water and proper sanitation.
• Veterinary public health at the human-animal interface is an integrated human and animal health approach to improve the prevention and control of NTDs.
• Among Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, STH infections are most prevalent in Visayas.
• Ancylostoma duodenale has two pairs of curved ventral cutting teeth.