Projekt

The goal of our ongoing activities is to test the feasibility of equipping communities living in informal urban settlements in Kisumu City, western Kenya, with strategies for schistosomiasis control, using the community-directed intervention strategy. An initial prevalence and distribution study to map schistosome and soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections was carried out among 1,308 children aged 10-18 years in 34 primary schools in 8 informal urban settlements in Kisumu City. Overall, 34% of children were infected with one or more other helminth whereas 16.2 % of children were infected with one or more other STH. Schools in closest proximity to Lake Victoria and River Nyamasaria had the highest S. mansoni prevalence while schools with STH infections were more homogenously distributed. Our study demonstrates that schistosomiasis and STH infections are important health priorities among schools in an informal urban area in Kenya and highlights the need for routine deworming programs in similar settings. Qualitative data on community participation has been collected from Nyalenda area which had highest prevalence of S.mansoni and is being used to design and evaluate community wide mass treatment strategies with Praziquantel.

• Prof. Dr. Bernhard Fleischer

  Bernhard-Nocht-Institut
  für Tropenmedizin (BNITM)
  Hamburg
  

• Dr. Pauline NM Mwinzi

  Kenya Medical Research Institute
  Center for Global Health Research, Kisumu
  Kisumu
  Kenia