Kontaminiranost zemlje i pijeska parazitskim elementima opasnim za ljudsko zdravlje u javnim parkovima i dječjim igralištima u Puli, Hrvatska

The objectives of the present study were to screen soil and sand samples collected from public parks and children’s playgrounds in the city of Pula for the presence of infective stages of parasites and to determine the prevalence of helminth eggs and protozoan cysts and oocysts in two seasons. 90 samples of soil and sand were collected from a total of nine parks and surveyed on two occasions, in June and December. Throughout the study 4 genera of nematode eggs and 2 genera of protozoan cysts and oocysts were detected. The contamination rate was different in the dry and rainy season. The most frequent finding was Toxocara sp. eggs and had the highest prevalence in both seasons. Of 90 samples 15.5% were positive for Toxocara spp. eggs in June and 23.3% in December. Our results show that Ascaris lumbricoides eggs from human faeces were detected in 4.4% samples in June and 15.5% in December. In June 45% of all parasite eggs were embryonated and in December the percentage rose to 75%. The increase in the number of positive findings in December was only found to be statistically significant (P<0.05) for A. lumbricoides eggs. There was no significant difference in the number of positive findings between soil and sand samples.Svrha ovog istraživanja bila je utvrditi prisutnost parazitskih elemenata u uzorcima zemlje i pijeska iz parkova i dječjih igrališta u Puli kao i stupanj kontaminiranosti uzoraka s helmintskim jajima i protozojskim cistama i oocistama. Izabrano je devet parkova s dječjim igralištima i sakupljeno 90 uzoraka zemlje i pijeska, dvokratno, u mjesecu lipnju i prosincu. Nađena su jaja 4 nematodska roda i ciste i oociste iz 2 protozojska roda. Stupanj kontaminacije u prosincu se povećao u odnosu na lipanj. Od 90 uzoraka 15,5% bilo je pozitivno na jaja roda Toxocara u lipnju, a postotak se u prosincu povećao na 23,3%. Jaja vrste A. lumbricoides, podrijetlom iz ljudskog fecesa nađena su u 4,4% uzoraka u lipnju odnosno u 15,5% uzoraka u prosincu. U lipnju je 45% svih nađenih parazitskih jaja bilo embrionirano dok je u prosincu postotak embrioniranih jaja bio 75%. Statistički značajan porast (P