Prevalence of amebiasis in inflammatory bowel disease in Turkey

AIM: To explore the prevalence of amebiasis in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in Turkey. METHODS: In this study, amoeba prevalence in 160 cases of IBD, 130 of ulcerative colitis and 30 of Crohn's disease were investigated in fresh faeces by means of wet mount+Lugol's iodine staining, modified formol ethyl acetate and trichrome staining methods and to compare the diagnostic accuracy of wet mount+Lugol's iodine staining, modified formol ethyl acetate and trichrome staining methods in the diagnosis of Entamoeba histolytica (E histolytica)l Entamoeba dispar (E. dispar). RESULTS: E. histolytica/E. dispar cysts and trophozoites were found in 14 (8.75%) of a total of 160 cases, 13 (10.0%) of the 130 patients with ulcerative colitis and 1 (3.3%) of the 30 patients with Crohn's disease. As for the 105 patients in the control group who had not any gastrointestinal complaints, 2 (1.90%) patients were found to have E. histolytica/E. dispar cysts in their faeces. Parasite prevalence in the patient group was determined to be significantly higher than that in the control group (Fischer's Exact Test, P<0.05). When the three methods of determining parasites were compared with one another, the most effective one was found to be trichrome staining method (Kruskal-Wallis Test, P<0.01). CONCLUSION: Consequently, amoeba infections in IBD cases have a greater prevalence compared to the normal population. The trichrome staining method is more effective for the detection of E. histolytica/E. dispar than the wet mount+Lugol's iodine staining, modified formol ethyl acetate methods.