Tehran University of Medical Sciences Iranian Journal of Parasitology 1735-7020 5 2 2010 06 15 60 64 EN Kh Hazrati Tappeh Dept. Of Parasitology & Mycology, Faculty of Medicine, Urmia University of Medical Sciences, Urmia, Iran H Mohammadzadeh Dept. Of Parasitology & Mycology, Faculty of Medicine, Urmia University of Medical Sciences, Urmia, Iran R Nejad Rahim Infectious disease specialist, Dept. Of Infectious Disease, Taleghani Hospital, Urmia Medical University, Urmia, Iran A Barazesh Dept. Of Parasitology & Mycology, Faculty of Medicine, Urmia University of Medical Sciences, Urmia, Iran Sh Khashaveh Dept. Of Parasitology & Mycology, Faculty of Medicine, Urmia University of Medical Sciences, Urmia, Iran H Taherkhani Dept. Of Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine, Golestan Medical University, Gorgan, Iran 2015 10 03 Background: The prevalence of intestinal parasites infection in institutions for mental retarda­tion of Ur­mia City, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran was investigated. Methods: This descriptive - cross sectional study was carried out in of Urmia city in 2007-2008. Fecal samples of 225 less than 29 year old mentally disabled individu­als were examined using direct smear, formalin - ether concen­tration. Beside their scotch tape samples were observed for Enterobius eggs. Statisti­cal evaluation was per­formed by SPSS 10. Results: Of 225 mentally retarded persons, 118(52.4%) and 107(47.6%) were female and male. The over­all prevalence of infection was 20.4% and that of male, and female were 20.5% and 20.3%, respectively. 17.3% of examined individuals had protozoa infection and 3.1% showed Entero­bius vermicularis eggs. The infection rates of detected intestinal protozoa were Enta­moeba coli 9.7%, Giardia lamblia 6.2%, Io­doamoeba butschlii 5.7%, Blastocystis hominis 4%, and Entamoeba histolytica/dispar 0.4%. Forty per­cent of 1-5 year, 22.8% of 6-14 year, 22.2% of 15-18 year, and 16.8% of more than 18-year age groups, had positive results in their tests. Accord­ing to IQ test results, 23.8% of less than 25 score group, 19.6% of 25-50, 17.2% of 50-75, and 40% of 75-90 groups were infected. Conclusion: More efforts for increasing sanitation level and prompt diagnosis and treat­ment of infected persons in these institutions are necessary. https://ijpa.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijpa/article/view/136 https://ijpa.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijpa/article/download/136/135