POTENTIAL IMPACT OF SOUTH-NORTH WATER TRANSFER PROJECT ON TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION OF SCHISTOSOM1ASIS JAPONICA / 中国血吸虫病防治杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To understand the potential impact of south-north water transfer project on transmission and distribution of Schistosomiasis japonica, and to put forward the countermea-sures of prevention of the disease transferring into other places. Methods The information on the progress of south-north water transfer project and factors related to the distribution of Schistosoma juponicum were collected, and the suggestions on improving the countermeasures were obtained through the group discussions and field visits. Results The potential impact of the project on the disease transferring is existed, mainly the disease transferring will be through the Lixia River basin in Jiangsu Province, and Chaohu areas of Anhui Province in the east route, and Sihu areas of Hubei Province in the middle route. The snail transferring northward will be affected both by the project and global warming, as a result, the endemic areas of Schistosomiasis will probably transfer into the Hongzehu and Chaohu areas in the future. Conclusion In the east route of the project, if the project is not combined with Schistosomiasis control, the endemic areas of Schistosomiasis will extend into other regions, the loss in the society and economy will be very large.