Baseline Mapping of Neglected Tropical Diseases in Africa: The Accelerated WHO/AFRO Mapping Project

Knowledge of tropical diseases and response capabilities of healthcare providers in Kaduna State, Nigeria

BACKGROUND

The public health impact of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) is quite substantial. The objective of this study was to assess the knowledge and response capability of health professionals regarding NTDs in Kaduna State, Nigeria.

METHODS

A pre-tested questionnaire with a Cronbach's α coefficient of 0.716 was administered to 350 health professionals. The questionnaire assessed the knowledge, resource availability and capacity to handle NTD cases.

RESULTS

Only 38 (12.6%) respondents were familiar with the World Health Organization's definition of NTDs. Although self-reported knowledge was highest for physicians (37 [82.2%]), there was no statistically significant knowledge disparity between cadres of health professionals. Only 12 (46.2%) practitioners in private health facilities reported adequate knowledge. The tier of practice was significantly associated with management of NTDs (χ2 = 10.545; df 2; p = 0.005). Only 24 (47.1%) medical laboratory scientists and 18 (40.0%) physicians had adequate clinical resources for management of NTDs. Nearly three-quarters (211 (70.1%)] of respondents had never been trained in the management of NTDs. More than half (177 [58.8%]) of facilities lacked pharmaceuticals or standard operating procedures for management of NTDs.

CONCLUSIONS

Self-reported knowledge of NTDs was suboptimal. Physical and clinical resources for the diagnosis and treatment of NTDs were inadequate. Targeted training, increased funding and provision of adequate resources are needed in order to ameliorate the situation.

How important is the spatial movement of people in attempts to eliminate the transmission of human helminth infections by mass drug administration?

Human mobility contributes to the spatial dynamics of many infectious diseases, and understanding these dynamics helps us to determine the most effective ways to intervene and plan surveillance. In this paper, we describe a novel transmission model for the spatial dynamics of hookworm, a parasitic worm which is a common infection across sub-Saharan Africa, East Asia and the Pacific islands. We fit our model, with and without mobility, to data obtained from a sub-county in Kenya, and validate the model's predictions against the decline in prevalence observed over the course of a clustered randomized control trial evaluating methods of administering mass chemotherapy. We find that our model which incorporates human mobility is able to reproduce the observed patterns in decline of prevalence during the TUMIKIA trial, and additionally, that the widespread bounce-back of infection may be possible over many years, depending on the rates of people movement between villages. The results have important implications for the design of mass chemotherapy programmes for the elimination of human helminth transmission. This article is part of the theme issue 'Challenges and opportunities in the fight against neglected tropical diseases: a decade from the London Declaration on NTDs'.

Prevalence and factors associated with transmission of schistosomiasis in school-aged children in South Sudan: a cross-sectional study

Introduction

South Sudan is affected by a high burden of Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs). The country is very vulnerable to NTDs due to its favourable tropical climate and multiple risk factors. However, the distribution of the diseases and the populations at risk for the various NTDs is unknown. This paper described the distribution of schistosomiasis in 58 counties and 261 schools in South Sudan.

Methods

a descriptive quantitative cross-sectional study of schistosomiasis in 58 counties in 8 states of South Sudan recruited school-aged children. Using different laboratory techniques, the children were tested for Schistosoma mansoni (S. mansoni) and Schistosoma haematobium (S. haematobium). A quantitative descriptive statistical was performed to determine the prevalence rates and the endemicity of schistosomiasis among 13,286 school-aged children.

Results

the overall prevalence of S. mansoni and S. haematobium were 6.1% and 3.7% using Kato Katz and urine filtration concentration testing techniques. The highest state prevalence was reported in Western Equatoria for both S. mansoni (14.7%) and S. haematobium (7.3%). The age of the participants varied from 4 to 18 years; of these, children 10 to 12 years old had the highest prevalence of S. mansoni (6.8%) and S. haematobium (3.7%). The prevalence of S. mansoni (7% male vs 5% female) and S. haematobium (3.6% male vs 3.1% female) were higher in males than females. The likelihood of the prevalence of S. mansoni in males was 1.42 (95% CI:1.23, 1.64) higher than in females, while for S. haematobium, 1.36 (95% CI:1.12, 1.65) higher than in females. The prevalence of S. mansoni and S. haematobium showed a statistically significant gender difference (P< 0.05).

Conclusion

the study had provided evidence of the distribution of schistosomiasis in South Sudan for policy direction and recommended annual preventive chemotherapy with praziquantel in all endemic areas.