Meet the editor

 Omolade Olayinka Okwa is presently a Professor of Parasitology at Lagos State University, Nigeria. She has a PhD in Parasitology (1997), an MSc in Cellular Parasitology (1992), and a BSc (Hons) Zoology (1990) all from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria. She teaches parasitology at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels. She was a recipient of a Commonwealth fellowship

supported by British Council tenable at the Centre for Entomology and Parasitology (CAEP), Keele University, United Kingdom between 2004 and 2005. She was awarded an Honorary Visiting Research Fellow at the same university from 2005 to 2007. She has been an external examiner to the Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Parasitology, University of Ibadan, MSc programme between 2010 and 2012. She is a member of the Nigerian Society of Experimental Biology (NISEB), Parasitology and Public Health Society of Nigeria (PPSN), Science Association of Nigeria (SAN), Zoological Society of Nigeria (ZSN), and is Vice Chairperson of the Organisation of Women in Science (OWSG), LASU chapter. She served as Head of Department of Zoology and Environmental Biology, Lagos State University from 2007 to 2010 and 2014 to 2016. She is a reviewer for several local and international journals such as Unilag Journal of Science, Libyan Journal of Medicine, Journal of Medicine and Medical Sciences, and Annual Research and Review in Science. She has authored 45 scientific research publications in local and international journals, 8 scientific reviews, 4 books, and 3 book chapters, which includes the books "Malaria Parasites" and "Malaria" which are IntechOpen access publications.

Contents

**Section 1**

**Section 2**

*by Omolade Olayinka Okwa*

Soil-Transmitted Helminths

*by Ingrid Papajová and Jindřich Šoltys*

Anthelmintic Resistance in Livestock

*by Richard R. Roach*

**Section 3**

Filariasis

**Section 4**

*by Sharba Kausar*

**Preface III**

Introductory Chapter **1**

**Chapter 1 3**

Soil Transmitted Helminthes **9**

**Chapter 2 11** Pregnancy, Children and Inter-Relating Factors Affected by Geohelminthiasis

**Chapter 3 23**

Nematodes Infections **31**

**Chapter 4 33**

**Chapter 5 67**

Helminthes and Livestock **83**

**Chapter 6 85**

*by Morutse Mphahlele, Nthatisi Molefe, Ana Tsotetsi-Khambule and Thekisoe Oriel*

Nematode Infections Spread in Slovakia, an European Temperate Region

Introductory Chapter: Helminthes Diversity - Focus on Nematodes

*by Asher John Mohan, Neeraj Upmanyu and Silviya Sarah Lal*

## Contents


Preface

Diseases caused by parasitic helminths (helminthiasis) are infectious and they pose serious health problems, especially in underdeveloped and developing countries of the world. This is a reflection of poor socio-economic conditions, which impacts on the social life of victims and the economic development of affected regions. Helminthiasis is caused by helminths such as flukes, tapeworms, filarial worms, pinworms, thread worms, and soil-transmitted nematodes. Infectious helminths

live in a large variety of habitats in humans and other vertebrate hosts.

population directly through fecal-oral routes.

estimated 120 million are already infected.

parasites.

countries.

Helminths are far more widespread than we think. Gastrointestinal helminths (GIHs) are the largest group of helminths that affect man, which results in major threats particularly in underdeveloped and developing countries where they are incorrectly classified as 'Neglected tropical diseases' (NTDS). However, it is a myth to assume that helminths do not exist in temperate countries. GIHs are usually soiltransmitted helminths (STHs) or geohelminths, affecting one third of the world

The World Health Organization (WHO) reported that about 2.9 million people are infected with gastrointestinal nematodes yearly. A more recent estimate indicates 3.5 billion cases worldwide. About 125,000 deaths are estimated to occur yearly mainly due to STHs. The prevalence of STHs has remained unchanged in over 50 years with 39 million disability adjusted life years (DALYS) lost to these

Globally, filariasis, which is vector-transmitted, is the second leading cause of a permanent and long-term disabling and disfiguring disease in the world causing chronic suffering but rarely mortality. According to WHO, in 2002, the DALYS from filariasis was 6 million. In 2013, 1.3 billion people in 72 countries were within areas of endemic filariasis and are continually threatened while an

Control efforts in some communities in underdeveloped and developing countries are impaired by poor sanitation, poverty, and ignorance leading to a high rate of infections and eventually to grave public health challenges. This is why such areas suffer serious consequences due to helminthiasis compared to developed areas. Large scale control programs are essential in less developed

This book provides insights into antihelminthic resistance in livestock, STHs with a focus on pregnant women and children, and what should be done to prevent and control helminth infections for which proper and adequate diagnosis is crucial.

Large scale targeted chemotherapy that focuses on the distribution of safe and effective drugs is an important component of helminthiasis control. This must be complemented with sustainable environmental sanitation and health education to produce a significant reduction in the transmission of helminth infections, especially in the tropics. Hand washing is a major way to prevent parasitic helminth
