CHAPTER ONE
1.0 INTRODUCTION
1.1 DESCRIPTION OF SCHISTOMIASIS
, also known as bilharzia, snail fever, and Katayama fever, is a disease caused by parasitic flatworms of the schistosomatype. The urinary tract or the intestines may be infected. Signs and symptoms may include abdominal pain, diarrhea,(Akpinar, 2012). Bloody stool, or blood in the urine. In those who have been infected a long time, liver damage, kidney failure, infertility, or bladder cancer may occur. In children, it may cause poor growth and learning difficulty (Antounet al., 2005).
The disease is spread by contact with fresh water contaminated with the parasites. These parasites are released from infected freshwater snails. The disease is especially common among children in developing countries as they are more likely to play in contaminated water(Akpinar, 2012). Other high risk groups include farmers, fishermen, and people using unclean water during daily living. It belongs to the group of helminth infections. Diagnosis is by finding eggs of the parasite in a person’s urine or stool. It can also be confirmed by finding antibodies against the disease in the blood (Duke, 2002).
Methods to prevent the disease include improving access to clean water and reducing the number of snails.(Duke,.2002) In areas where the disease is common, the medication praziquantel may be given once a year to the entire group. This is done to decrease the number of people infected and, consequently, the spread of the disease. Praziquantel is also the treatment recommended by the World Health Organization(WHO) for those who are known to be infected (Akpinar, 2012)..
(Antounet al., 2005) Schistosomiasis affected almost 210 million people worldwide as of 2012. An estimated 12,000 to 200,000 people die from it each year. The disease is most commonly found in Africa, as well as Asia and South America. Around 700 million people, in more than 70 countries, live in areas where the disease is common. In tropical countries, schistosomiasis is second only to malaria among parasitic diseases with the greatest economic impact. Schistosomiasis is listed as a neglected tropical disease(Akpinar, 2012).
  Schistosomiasis is caused by infectious trematode worms of the genus Schistosoma. There are five schistosome species known to infect humans: S. haematobium (identified in 1852), S. japonicum (1904), S. mansoni (1907), S. intercalatum (1934), and S. mekongi (1978). In 2011, an estimated 243 million people in 78 countries were living in areas of high risk for the disease. The African region is the most affected, with 42 countries endemic for the infection, followed by the Eastern Mediterranean region with 16 countries affected. Schistosomiasis was also endemic in 10 countries in the region of the Americas, six in the Western Pacific regions, and three in the Southeast Asian region and in Turkey, the only country affected in the European region.