Soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections and diarrheal illness affect billions of people yearly. We conducted a cross-sectional survey in Nueva Santa Rosa, Guatemala to identify factors associated with STH infections and diarrhea using univariable and multivariable logistic regression models. On multivariable analyses, we found associations between STH infections and two factors: school-aged children (odds ratio (OR) vs. adults: 2.35, 95% CI 1.10–4.99) and household drinking water supply classified as ‘other improved’ (OR vs. ‘improved’: 7.00, CI 1.22–40.14). Finished floors in the household vs. natural floors were highly protective (OR 0.16, CI 0.05–0.50) for STH infection. In crowded households (>2.5 people/bedroom), observing water present at handwashing stations was also protective (OR 0.32, CI 0.11–0.98). When adjusted for drying hands, diarrhea was associated with preschool-age children (OR vs. adults: 3.33, CI 1.83–6.04), spending >10 min per round trip collecting water (OR 1.90, CI 1.02–3.56), and having a handwashing station ≤10 m near a sanitation facility (OR 3.69, CI 1.33–10.21). Our study indicates that familiar WASH interventions, such as increasing drinking water quantity and water at handwashing stations in crowded homes, coupled with a hygiene intervention like finished flooring may hold promise for STH and diarrhea control programs. © 2021 The Authors.

Improved water quality reduces diarrhea, but the impact of improved water quality on Ascaris and Trichuris, soil-transmitted helminths (STH) conveyed by the fecal-oral route, is less well described. To assess water quality associations with diarrhea and STH, we conducted a cross-sectional survey in households of south-eastern Guatemala. Diarrhea was self-reported in the past week and month. STH was diagnosed by stool testing using a fecal parasite concentrator method. We explored associations between Escherichia coli-positive source water (water quality) and disease outcomes using survey logistic regression models. Overall, 732 persons lived in 167 households where water was tested. Of these, 79.4% (581/732) had E. coli-positive water, 7.9% (58/732) had diarrhea within the week, 14.1% (103/732) had diarrhea within the month, and 6.6% (36/545) tested positive for Ascaris or Trichuris, including 1% (6/536) who also reported diarrhea. Univariable analysis found a statistically significant association between water quality and STH (odds ratio [OR] = 5.1, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.1-24.5) but no association between water quality and diarrhea. Waterborne transmission and effects of water treatment on STH prevalence should be investigated further. If a causal relationship is found, practices such as household water treatment including filtration might be useful adjuncts to sanitation, hygiene, and deworming in STH control programs.

Soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections affect persons living in areas with poor water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH). Preschool-aged children (PSAC) and school-aged children (SAC) are disproportionately affected by STH infections. We aimed to identify WASH factors associated with STH infection among PSAC and SAC in Kibera, Kenya. In 2012, households containing a PSAC or SAC were randomly selected from those enrolled in the International Emerging Infections Program, a population-based surveillance system. We administered a household questionnaire, conducted environmental assessments for WASH, and tested three stools from each child for STH eggs using the Kato-Katz method. WASH factors were evaluated for associations with STH infection using univariable and multivariable Poisson regression. Any-STH prevalence was 40.8% among 201 PSAC and 40.0% among 475 SAC enrolled. Using the Joint Monitoring Programme water and sanitation classifications, 1.5% of households reported piped water on premises versus 98.5% another improved water source; 1.3% reported improved sanitation facilities, while 81.7% used shared sanitation facilities, 13.9% had unimproved facilities, and 3.1% reported no facilities (open defecation). On univariable analysis, STH infection was significantly associated with a household toilet located off-premises (prevalence ratio (PR) = 1.33; p = 0.047), while always treating water (PR = 0.81; p = 0.04), covering drinking water containers (PR = 0.75; p = 0.02), using clean towels during hand drying (PR = 0.58; p<0.01), having finished household floor material (PR = 0.76; p<0.01), having electricity (PR = 0.70; p<0.01), and increasing household elevation in 10-meter increments (PR = 0.89; p<0.01) were protective against STH infection. On multivariable analysis, usually versus always treating water was associated with increased STH prevalence (adjusted prevalence ratio (aPR) = 1.52; p<0.01), while having finished household floor material (aPR = 0.76; p = 0.03), reported child deworming in the last year (aPR = 0.76; p<0.01), and 10-meter household elevation increases (aPR = 0.89; p<0.01) were protective against infection. The intersection between WASH and STH infection is complex; site-specific WASH interventions should be considered to sustain the gains made by deworming activities.

Poor sanitation could pose greater risk for enteric pathogen transmission at higher human population densities because of greater potential for pathogens to infect new hosts through environmentally mediated and person-to-person transmission. We hypothesized that incidence and prevalence of diarrhea, enteric protozoans, and soil-transmitted helminth infections would be higher in high-population-density areas compared with low-population-density areas, and that poor sanitation would pose greater risk for these enteric infections at high density compared with low density. We tested our hypotheses using 6 years of clinic-based diarrhea surveillance (2007-2013) including 4,360 geolocated diarrhea cases tested for 13 pathogens and a 2010 cross-sectional survey that measured environmental exposures from 204 households (920 people) and tested 701 stool specimens for enteric parasites. We found that population density was not a key determinant of enteric infection nor a strong effect modifier of risk posed by poor household sanitation in this setting.