Determining the Prevalence Rate of Scabies and its Associated Social and Demographic Factors among Patients Attending Health Centers in the Qom Province (2005-2013)

Document Type : Original Research

Authors

1 Qom province Health Center, Qom University of Medical Sciences, Qom, Iran

2 Faculty of Health, Qom University of Medical Sciences, Qom, Iran

3 Faculty of Medicine, Qom University of Medical Sciences, Qom, Iran

4 Bam Health Center, Bam University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran

Abstract

Aims: The aim of this study was to detect the prevalence rate of scabies and its associated social and demographic factors in patients referring to the health and therapeutic centers of the Qom province, during years 2005 to 2013.

Methods: This study was performed as a cross -sectional study. Initially 411 people suspected to be infected with scabies were registered in order to identify the confirmed cases from the epidemiological forms. Among the registered cases, 343 samples were disease-free while 68 cases had the disease.

After data collections using a structured questionnaire, a statistical analysis was conducted using the Binary logistic regression model in the SPSS software (V.16).

Results: The prevalence rate of scabies among people referring to health centers was equal to 0.7 per 100000 people. Among the patients 85.3% lived in families with 5 or more members, 61.8% had been raised in livestock, 66.2% of them had inhabited in mud and inappropriate houses and 2.9% had lived in military barracks.

Conclusion: It can be concluded that many factors such as family size, rising livestock and dwelling in villages with mud and inappropriate houses are among the factors that effect the prevalence of scabies among the residents of the Qom province.

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