Community based schistosomiasis control in Zimbabwe

ABSTRACT

The project was established to investigate the feasibility of a national schistosomiasis control programme in Zimbabwe based upon an intergrated approach. The project involved community self help sanitation and water programmes; health education; chemotherapy of school children with praziquantel; and focal mollusciciding. The project was carried out in two rural areas of Zimbabwe with a combined population of over 40;000 people. Madziwa (32;00 people) had all of the above interventions; and Bushu (8.000 people) had only the chemotherapy intervention. Infection with schistosomiasis was determined by the use of reagent strip examination for haematuria. This low cost method of diagnosis was found to be very appropriate and feasible for the examination of large numbers of children and the method was recommended for use in a national control programme. Pretreatment infection levels with schistosomiasis generally exceeded 60in both areas although there was considerable heterogenity in distribution