Introduction

Abstract

Forty years have passed since Trussell¹ published an important book in the English language on Trichomonas vaginalis Donné and urogenital trichomoniasis. During the intervening four decades, much information has been accumulated on trichomonads parasitic in humans and on the diseases they cause. In light of this, many parasitologists and clinicians believe that the time has come for a complete review, in book form, of various aspects of these parasites and of the trichomonad parasitemias. This need has been further reinforced by the finding that, despite the use of effective antitrichomonal drugs during the past years, the prevalence of human urogenital trichomoniasis, the world’s most common sexually transmitted disease, has been increasing significantly. As might have been expected, therefore, discussion of various aspects of T. vaginalis and of the disease it causes occupies much space in this book.