{
  "abstract": "Background: Chronic helminth infections cause serious health problems; however, limited data on prevalence and distribution hinder effective control interventions. This study assessed the prevalence, distribution, and risk factors of helminth infections in adults across four health districts (HD) in the Littoral Region of Cameroon, while hypothesizing that helminth infection prevalences are significantly higher in densely forested and wetland forest plantation districts compared to degraded and mosaic plantation forest districts despite over more than two decades of preventive chemotherapy. Methodology/Principal Findings: Adults aged 18 – 65 years residing in the community for ≥ 5 years were recruited across four HDs. Skin snips, thick blood films, and stool samples were examined using the Kato Katz method (stool) and microscopy. Demographic data were analyzed in R. Participants were mainly farmers (79.9%), male (52.9%) and aged 18–49 years (50.7%). Yabassi HD, a densely forested area, recorded the highest prevalence of Loa loa and Mansonella perstans, while Loum HD, a wetland forest plantation area, showed higher prevalence for other helminth groups. Overall infection prevalence was 41.9%, dominated by filariasis (33.3%), with Onchocerca volvulus (23.9%) being most common, followed by M. perstans (11.9%) and L. loa (8.9%). Intestinal nematode prevalence was 9.9%, led by Capillaria spp. (4.6%), Ascaris lumbricoides (2.9%) and Trichuris trichiura (2.7%). Trematode infections included Dicrocoelium dendriticum (6.9%) and Paragonimus spp. (3.5%), while Taenia spp. (3.1%) was the most common cestode. Infections were more frequent in males and individuals over 40 years. Strong associations were observed among parasites with similar life cycles, Filariasis risk increased with age ≥ 50 years and longer residence, whereas recent deworming and higher education reduced the odds. Conclusions/Significance: Adult helminth infections pose a public health risk and may serve as transmission reservoirs in child-centred programs. Monitoring and including adults in preventive chemotherapy programs, promoting regular deworming and awareness and using a multi-parasite, multi-pathway strategy will strengthen control and elimination efforts in persistently endemic areas. Author summary: Helminths are parasitic worms affecting over 1.5 billion people globally. These infections lead to nutritional deficiencies, immune suppression, and increased vulnerability to other diseases. In Cameroon, only five helminth infections, ascariasis, trichuriasis, hookworm infections, schistosomiasis and onchocerciasis are currently being controlled, leaving a majority like loiasis, mansonellosis, taeniasis and others whose continuous presence interferes with the ongoing control interventions. Control efforts include annual Preventive Chemotherapy (PC) for schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminthiasis through school-based deworming, and Community Directed Treatment with Ivermectin (CDTI) for onchocerciasis. Currently, no vaccines are registered for human helminth infections, and the available drugs have limited efficacy. There is also limited or no data on disease prevalence and distribution. To achieve the WHO 2021–2030 road map goals for controlling helminth infections, robust surveillance and expanded interventions will be needed. Thus, this study aims to fill data gaps by assessing the prevalence, distribution, and risk factors of helminth infections in rural communities across four health districts in the Littoral Region of Cameroon.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Parasite and Vector Biology Research Unit, Department of Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Science, University of Buea, Buea, Cameroon.",
    "Research Foundation in Tropical Diseases and the Environment, Buea, Cameroon.",
    "University of Bonn, University Hospital Bonn, Institute for Medical Microbiology, Immunology and Parasitology, Bonn, Germany.",
    "German-West African Centre for Global Health and Pandemic Prevention (G-WAC), Bonn, Germany.",
    "German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), Bonn-Cologne, Bonn, Germany."
  ],
  "article_type": "Research Article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 20,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Anita Bate Obi Ebob"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Narcisse Victor Tchamatchoua Gandjui"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Benjamin Lenz"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Emmanuel Ouam"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Juluis Visnel Foyet"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Amuam Andrew Beng"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Fanny Fri Fombad"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Franck Noel Nietcho"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2,
        3
      ],
      "name": "Manuel Ritter"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Indulekha Karunakaran"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Ndialle Nordine Mponge"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Lucy Cho Nchang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Cheng Wang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Fonyuy Brandon Tahnteng"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Jerome Fru Cho"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Mathias Eyong Esum"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Tatiana Djikeussi Katcho"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2,
        3,
        4
      ],
      "name": "Achim Hoerauf"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2,
        4
      ],
      "name": "Marc P Hübner",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-8885-418X"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Samuel Wanji"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/576k8sxghyv3a.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1371/journal.pntd.0014780",
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  "id": "576k8sxghyv3a",
  "issns": [
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    "1935-2727"
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  "language": "eng",
  "licence": "CC-BY",
  "licence_label": "CC BY",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
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      "2405|Parasites and Host Interactions"
    ],
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      "/Biology and life sciences/Anatomy/Digestive system/Gastrointestinal tract"
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  "pmcid": "PMC13686460",
  "pmid": "42853870",
  "published": "2026-10-09",
  "publisher": "Public Library of Science",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/576k8sxghyv3a.ris",
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    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:17:30Z",
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  "subjects": [
    {
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      "subfield": "zoology-behaviour"
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  "title": "Epidemiology of helminth infections in adults in rural rainforest communities of the Nkam-Wouri River Basin, Littoral Region of Cameroon: Implications for NTDs elimination using preventive chemotherapies",
  "title_text": "Epidemiology of helminth infections in adults in rural rainforest communities of the Nkam-Wouri River Basin, Littoral Region of Cameroon: Implications for NTDs elimination using preventive chemotherapies",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:18:12Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/576k8sxghyv3a",
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