Schistosoma haematobium infection among Ethiopian prisoners of war (1977-1988) returning from Somalia.

Fifty Ethiopian male prisoners of war aged 20-34 years returning from Somalia were examined at the Schistosomiasis Diagnostic Laboratory of the Institute of Pathobiology, Addis Abeba University, Addis Abeba in 1988. Medical history was obtained and their urine was examined by the filtration technique. Recovered eggs of S. haematobium were allowed to hatch as a test for viability. Positive patients were treated with praziquantel at a single dose of 40mg per kg. 94% of the prisoners gave history of haematuria and 96% gave history of treatment for schistosomiasis while in Somalia. S. haematobium egg positivity rate was 30% and all but one patient had viable eggs in their urine. The geometric mean egg count per 10ml urine was only 6.4. Urine examination of treated cases six weeks later showed 100% cure rate. A preliminary compatibility study between Ethiopian Bulinus snails and the Somalian strain of S. haematobium showed that B. abyssinicus and B. truncatus were susceptible to the parasite while B. africanus was only partially susceptible. The possibility that a foreign strain of S. haematobium may be introduced into ecologically and malacologically receptive areas in Ethiopia is discussed.