Summary

Control of Giardia lamblia infection among kindergarten childrenThree different scredules of treatment for Giardia lamblia infection were evaluated in 416 children from poor neighbourhoods kindergarten schools by parasitologicai examination of fecal samples, In the first kindergarten (group I), children were only given oral tinidazol 50 mg • kg of body weight for three times, at diagnosis and later at three months intervals.In the second one [group II] the same treatment schedule was given together with health education on preventive measures on each one of the three oportunities.Children attending to the third kindergarten (group 111) received pharmacological treatment only iwice, at diagnosis and after six months, but health education was given thrice, also at three month intervals from diagnosis.The frequency of infection lowered significantly from 43.9% to 17.5% at the end of the school year [p < 0.05| in group II patients, bu* only from 36.3% to 25.4% in group I and from 50.5% to 21 .8% in group 111.Thus, giardicsis seems to be best controlled by both periodical treatment and health education of infected ch.i'dren.