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medicine

National mapping of schistosomiasis, soiltransmitted helminthiasis and anaemia in Yemen: Towards better national control and elimination

PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, Volume 16, No. 3, Article e0010092, Year 2022

Background Schistosomiasis (SCH) and soil-transmitted helminthiasis (STH) are known to be endemic in Yemen. However, the distribution of both diseases had not previously been assessed by a well-structured national mapping study covering all governorates. The main aim of this study was, therefore, to map the prevalence of SCH and STH in Yemen in order to better inform implementation of effective national control and elimination interventions. The assessment of the distribution of anaemia was also included as a well-known consequence of infection with both SCH and STH. Secondarily, the study aimed to provide a broad indica- tion of the impact of large-scale treatment on the distribution of infection. Methodology and principal findings To achive these aims, 80,432 children (10–14 years old) from 2,664 schools in 332 of Yemen’s 333 districts were included, in 2014, into this national cross-sectional survey. This study benefited from the financial support of the World Bank, Grant Award No. IDA- H5420 (AH, NK) in partnership with The End Fund (KP) and the Schistosomiasis Control Initiative (NAJ, DAA, FF, MDF, based at Imperial College London at that time). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. Competing interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist. Countrywide, 63.3% (210/332) and 75.6% (251/332) of districts were found to be endemic for SCH and STH respectively. More districts were affected by intestinal than urogenital SCH (54.2% and 31.6% respectively). SCH infection was mostly mild and moderate, with no districts reporting high infection. One quarter (24.4%) of Yemeni districts had high or moder- ate levels of Ascaris lumbricoides infection. Infection with Trichuris trichiura was the second most common STH (44.9% of districts infected) after A. lumbricoides (68.1%). Hookworm was the least prevalent STH (9.0%).Anaemia was prevalent in 96.4% of districts; it represented a severe public health prob- lem (prevalence 40%) in 26.5% of districts, and a mild to moderate problem in two thirds of the districts (33.7% and 36.1% respectively). ConclusionThis study provided the first comprehensive mapping of SCH, STH, and anaemia across the country. This formed the basis for evaluating and continuing the national control and elimina- tion programme for these neglected tropical diseases in Yemen.
Statistics
Citations: 18
Authors: 18
Affiliations: 10
Identifiers
Research Areas
Infectious Diseases
Maternal And Child Health
Study Design
Cross Sectional Study
Grounded Theory
Study Approach
Quantitative