Residual malaria hotspots in Peru and Brazil: setting the stage for testing improved interventions

Objectives

This study aimed to find out more about ongoing malaria transmission in two different hotspots in the Peruvian and Brazilian Amazon. This is being done to strengthen strategic measures against malaria. This project sought to evaluate the following:

• current mosquito control measures
• human behaviours influencing human-vector interactions
• mosquito vector biology

Specific objectives:

1. To compare prevalence/ incidence of parasitemia among households with and without bed-net use, such as insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) and long-lasting insecticidal net (LLINs), and with/without indoor residual spraying (IRS).
2. To determine vector biology metrics, quantify environmental variables of aquatic mosquito habitats and genetically characterise immature and adult Anopheles darlingi along the Mazán and Napo Rivers (Loreto Department, Peru) and in Mâncio Lima (Juruá Valley, Brazil).
3. To assess the socioeconomic, behavioural, and environmental determinants of ongoing malaria through a combination of household surveys and satellite imagery.

The study will provide information of the impact on the use of treated nets in Mâncio Lima, Brazil and Mazán River, Peru (ITNs/LLINs, depending on the site) on the prevalence/incidence of malaria parasitemia. Results will facilitate the quantification of residual malaria in these hotspots.