Zhao, Huan, Mutombo, Polydor, Mintsa-Nguema, Rodrigue, Nkoghe, Dieudonné, Atsame, Julienne, Azzato, Francesca, Hor, Eileen, Hinaut, Jee, Graham, Maryza, Grahn, Emily, Watts, Matthew, Constantinoiu, Constantin, and Bradbury, Richard (2026) Surveillance and sociodemographic risk profiling of human soil-transmitted helminth infections in Gabon, Central Africa. Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. (In Press)

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Abstract

Background Sub-Saharan Africa bears the highest global burden of soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections. In Gabon, community-level epidemiological data remain limited and no molecular surveillance of STHs has been conducted to date.

Methods In July 2023, a community-based cross-sectional survey was conducted in rural and urban areas of Ngounié Province, Gabon. Stool samples from 233 participants were analysed using formalin-ethyl acetate sedimentation microscopy and the Allplex GI-Helminth(I) quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) assay.

Results Overall, 70.0% (95% CI 63.6 to 75.8) of participants tested positive for at least one STH by microscopy or qPCR. Trichuris spp. was the most prevalent helminth (59.2% [95% CI 52.6 to 65.6]), followed by Ascaris spp. (48.1% [95% CI 41.5 to 54.7%]), hookworms (18.5% [95% CI 13.7 to 24.0]) and Strongyloides spp. (12.0% [95% CI 8.1 to 16.9]). Microscopy identified Strongyloides fuelleborni in 2.7% of samples. qPCR detected Necator americanus in 16.7% and Ancylostoma spp. in 0.4%. Rural residence was independently associated with Ascaris spp. (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] 2.50; p=0.007) and Trichuris spp. (AOR 2.45; p=0.008) infections. Male sex (AOR 3.83; p=0.010) and age 18–40 y (AOR 4.90; p=0.011) were associated with Strongyloides spp. infection.

Conclusions STH infections remain endemic in certain Gabonese communities. The findings highlight the need for species-specific surveillance using sensitive molecular diagnostics to inform targeted control strategies.

Item ID:	92001
Item Type:	Article (Research - C1)
ISSN:	1878-3503
Keywords:	Gabon, Helminths, Necator, Prevalence, Real-time PCR, Strongyloides
Copyright Information:	© The Author(s) 2026. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted reuse, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Date Deposited:	26 May 2026 01:08
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