Preliminary survey of implementation of a school health program in Guinea

The Sectorial Adjustment Education Program implemented in Guinea by the Ministry of Pre-University Education in 1995 includes health-related measures. An important part is the fight against parasitosis and in particular against intestinal helminth infection which has been shown to impair cognitive function in school children. In order to obtain data for this purpose, a survey was carried out in 7 subprefectures across the country. A total of 1 649 children were examined to determine the prevalence in each school of macroscopic hematuria-related schistosomiasis and of various intestinal helminthiasis in stools. In 1468 of these children blood tests were also made to measure hemoglobin levels and detect malarial hematozoons. Overall prevalence rates were 60,0 % for soil-transmitted nematodes, 9,1 % for urinary schistosomiasis, 57,6 % for blood plasmodium, and 57,0 % for anemia. Hemoglobin levels were lower in children presenting plasmodium, multiple parasitic infection, and high ankylostoma burdens. Prevalence rates varied widely between regions indicating differences in therapeutic measures. In two villages more than 200 children not attending school who had been informed by school children were treated. This word-of-mouth effect shows that school health programs are also useful to reach children outside the school health system.