Epidemiological Study of Pediculosis among Primary School Children in Sulaimani Governorate, Kurdistan Region of Iraq

Background: Pediculosis is a common parasitic public health issue. Many socio-demographic and economic factors affect the pattern and prevalence of pediculosis. It is widely spread among pupils, particularly those in elementary schools. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of Pediculus capitis infestation and its related risk factors in pri­mary school children in Sulaimani Governorate, Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

Methods: This is a cross-sectional study, overall, 2064 primary school children (aged 5–14 years) during the period from October 2019 to February 2020 were randomly examined for the presence of any stage of Pediculosis capitis in both urban and suburban areas. The schools were selected by multistage sampling methods. A questionnaire was sent to the parents to get consent and fill in for every single pupil. The results were computed using the chi-square test and lo­gistic regression analysis.

Results: The overall prevalence of head lice infestation was (9.16%). The study found a significant association of Pe­diculosis capitis infestation with gender, parents’ education level, mother’s employment, number of siblings, and previ­ous infestation. The older age of children (≥12 years old) and the higher-grade pupils (4th to 6th class) were more infest­ed.

Conclusion: Head lice remain a health problem for school children. It needs collaboration of many sectors for decreas­ing and early detection and treatment in both urban and suburban areas since they have a close rate of infestation.