Amoebic dysentery - How common is it?

Amoebic dysentery is rare in the UK. But it's quite common around the world, especially in developing countries and tropical countries. People from the UK are most likely to get it if they've been travelling in these countries.

Amoebas are tiny parasites. This means they can live inside your body. There are different types of amoeba, and they don't always make you ill. This makes it hard to say exactly how many people are infected with the type that causes dysentery.

Infection with amoebas is more common in Central and South America, Africa and Asia.[1] [2] [3] Up to 40 percent of people in these areas may be infected. Most of these people won't become ill, but they can pass on the infection to other people.

In the UK and other developed countries, less than 1 percent of people have amoebas in their body.[4] People in these countries are most likely to get amoebic dysentery when they're travelling in the developing parts of the world.[4]

Amoebic dysentery is also commoner in crowded conditions or places where lots of people live together, for example at an army barracks.[4] [5] [6]

Around the world, between 40,000 and 100,000 people die of amoebic dysentery each year.[7] But it's rare to die of amoebic dysentery in countries such as the UK, where you have easy access to good health care.

References

Rivera WI, Tachibana H, Kanbara H. Field study on the distribution of Entamoeba histolytica and Entamoeba dispar in the northern Philippines as detected by PCR. American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. 1998; 59: 916-921.
Haque R, Faruque ASG, Hahn P, et al. Entamoeba histolytica and Entamoeba dispar infection in children in Bangladesh. Journal of Infectious Diseases. 1997; 175: 734-736.
Braga LL, Mendonca Y, Paiva CA, et al. Seropositivity for and intestinal colonization with Entamoeba histolytica and Entamoeba dispar in individuals in Northeastern Brazil. Journal of Clinical Microbiology. 1998; 36: 3044-3045.
Stanley SL. Amoebiasis. Lancet. 2003; 361: 1025-1034.
Davis AN, Haque R, Petri WA. Update on protozoan parasites of the intestine. Current Opinion in Gastroenterology. 2002; 18: 10-14.
Petri WA, Singh U. Diagnosis and management of amebiasis. Clinical Infectious Diseases. 1999; 29: 1117-1125.
Espinosa-Cantellano M, Martinez-Palomo A. Recent developments in amoebiasis research. Current Opinion in Infectious Diseases. 2000; 13: 451-456.

Glossary

parasite: Parasites are germs or creatures that can only survive by living on or in another living thing.

This information does not replace medical advice. If you are concerned you might have a medical problem please ask your Boots pharmacy team in your local Boots store, or see your doctor.