Last Updated: 13/02/2018
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:
- 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).
- 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).
- 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.
By identifying local patterns of human-vector contact and transmission, we will be able to guide the rational design of improved or novel control interventions to reduce and eventually eliminate malaria in these areas. We will focus on the primary malaria vector, Anopheles darlingi because of its abundance and ability to adapt quickly to microgeographic changes resulting from novel environmental conditions such as those encountered in our proposed sites.
This study involved:
- Household surveys (Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices (KAP) surveys and epidemiological surveys) to collected comprehensive data on the local population;
- The use of drones to create high-resolution maps of mosquito breeding sites;
- Satellite data of the study areas;
- Recording and georeferencing all reported malaria cases;
- Collection and analysis of mosquitoes;
- Characterisation of mosquito breeding sites, and ecological and chemical analysis of water bodies;
- Laboratory analysis of Anopheles to determine whether they were infected with malaria parasites and their blood meal sources.
Oct 2015 — Oct 2016
Related Resources
