Parasitic Contamination of Raw Vegetables in Zanjan Markets, Iran

Background; Complex surface of vegetables facilitate attachment and transmission of several pathogens. No previous study has been conducted in survey of parasitic contamination of vegetables in Zanjan. This study aimed to detect the parasitic contamination in common raw vegetables in Zanjan markets.
Methods; A total of 352 raw vegetable samples, including leek, parsley, basil, mint, radish, cress and dill were collected from grocery stores using cluster sampling in different regions of the city during 2014. The edible parts of vegetables were separated and immersed in normal saline solution. Floating vegetables were removed and the solution was allowed to sediment at room temperature for 24 hours. The pellet was examined following sedimentation and floatation methods.
Results; Various Organisms were detected in 54% (190) of the 352 samples, but only 2.8% of samples had pathogenic parasites including; Trichostrongylus eggs (3), Hookworm eggs (2), Eimeria oocysts (2), Sarcocystis oocyst (1), Strongyloides larvae (1), and Fasciola eggs (1). The contamination rate of vegetables was highest (90.4%) in the fall (p˂0.05).
Conclusion; Vegetable contamination with parasitic organisms in this area was low, maybe due to irrigation of vegetables with sources other than sewage water, but it is still necessary to improve sanitary conditions of vegetables.