CURRENT STATUS AND PREDICTORS OF URINARY SCHISTOSOMIASIS AMONG SCHOOL CHILDREN LIVING IN COMMUNITIES AROUND MAIRUWA DAM, FUNTUA LOCAL GOVERNMENT, KATSINA STATE, NIGERIA

Schistosomiasis, is one of the world’s major Neglected Tropical Diseases of great public health concern. It is mostly prevalent in poor communities with little or no access to portable drinking water and adequate sanitation. This research is aimed to determine the current status and predictors of urinary schistosomiasis among schoolchildren living in communities around Mairuwa dam, Funtua Local Government, Katsina state, Nigeria. The survey was conducted among 394 schoolchildren aged 7-15 years. Socio-demographic information of the children was obtained using pre-tested questionnaires. Urine samples were collected using standard techniques and examined by filtration method for the presence of Schistosoma haematobium eggs. The findings showed an overall prevalence of 29.4% and mean intensity of 29.0 eggs/10ml of urine. The findings further indicated that, males were most infected by the disease as all the females that participated in the survey were un-infected. Children from Dikke primary school were more infected compared to the participants from the other primary schools. The main predictors for the infection in the area were gender (P = <0.01) and water contact activities (P =