Research Article Epidemiologic Study of Blastocystis Infection in an Urban Community in the Philippines

License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Blastocystis has been considered as the most common intestinal parasite in humans and has an augmented impact on public health. However, the prevalence of this parasite in the Philippines has not been determined. To contribute to a better understanding of the epidemiology of this infection, a cross-sectional study aimed at providing the first documented data on the prevalence and correlates, sociodemographic factors, hygiene practices, source of water supply, and dog ownership, associated with Blastocystis infection was carried out in randomly selected communities at Pateros, Metro Manila. Fecal samples from respondents were collected and cultured in diphasic agarmedium for 3–7 days and examined using lightmicroscopy. Of the 1,271 respondents, 12.98% (95%CI: 11.13–14.83) were detected positive forBlastocystis. Among the correlates ofBlastocystis infection, dog ownershipwas found significantly associated as confirmed by multivariate analysis. Therefore, this factor should be considered in information to creat