Awareness, ownership and utilization of insecticide treated nets in Abavo community of Delta State.

BACKGROUND: Despite free distribution of insecticide treated nets in Nigeria, the use it as a means of malaria prevention and control has not been fuIly embraced. AIM: The aim of this survey was to determine the level of awareness, ownership and utilization of insecticide treated nets among residents of Abavo community, Delta State Nigeria METHOD: It is a descriptive cross-sectional survey conducted among 250 heads of households. RESULT: One hundred and seventy five (70%) respondents were aware of insecticide treated net as a means of prevention against malaria, 111 (44%) claimed to own insecticide treated nets. On further inspection of houses of those who claimed to own ITNs, seventy four (66%) actually had theirs hanged, the rest were either in their packs or not seen. Ninety five (38%) respondents out of the total sleep under insecticide treated net. About 92 (70%) households having under-five and 39 (81.3%) of households having pregnant women claim to use ITNs. It was observed that the level of education (chi2 = 48.35, p = 0.001), presence of under 5 children in a household ?2 = 7.229, p = 0.027) influenced ownership of Insecticide treated nets. In conclusion despite a high level of awareness about ITN found in this survey, ownership and utilization of insecticide treated nets were low.

An in vitro study assessing the infection risk of low-cost polyethylene mosquito net compared with commercial hernia prosthetics.

BACKGROUND: The innovative use of sterilized mosquito net as a cheaper alternative to commercial mesh for hernia repair has gained increasing recognition. Developing health care systems have inherently higher surgical site infection rates, and concerns regarding the introduction of untested prosthetic hernia meshes have been raised. This in vitro study assesses the infection risk of polyethylene (PE) mosquito net mesh compared with commercial hernia prosthetics by assessing the essential (first) step in the pathogenesis of mesh infections. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Individual meshes were inoculated with Staphylococcusepidermidis and Staphylococcusaureus with a bacterial inoculum of 10(2) bacteria. Inoculated meshes were incubated for 18 h in tryptone soy broth and then analyzed using scanning electron microcopy. The final fraction of the bacteria adherent to each of the meshes was compared. One-way analysis of variance was performed on the bacterial counts. The Tukey test was used to determine the difference between the different biomaterials in the event the one-way analysis of variance was significant. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in the mean number of adherent bacteria to PE mosquito net compared with the monofilament polypropylene-based meshes (Prolene and Bard Soft Mesh). Multifilament Vypro mesh had significantly greater mean bacterial adherence compared with PE mosquito net (P < 0.001 with S aureus and P = 0.003 with S epidermidis). CONCLUSIONS: In vitro infection risk of PE mosquito net is not significantly different from commonly used monofilament polypropylene commercial prosthetics and is in fact lower than a commonly used commercial multifilament mesh. This study adds to the growing body of evidence that indicates that these meshes can be safely deployed.

Family biosocial variables driving adherence to the use of insecticide treated nets among under-five children managed for malaria in a rural hospital in eastern Nigeria.

BACKGROUND: As the distribution and awareness of free insecticide treated nets (ITNs) for malaria control continues to grow in Nigeria in order to meet the coverage target for the year 2010, a large gap exists between acquiring them, using them, and adhering to its use by families of under-five children. Therefore, the family biosocial variables driving its adherence need to be explored if the potential benefits of the nets are to be fully harnessed by families of under-five children in Nigeria. This study was aimed at describing family biosocial variables driving adherence to the use of insecticide treated nets among under-five children managed for malaria in a rural hospital in Eastern Nigeria. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was descriptive hospital-based study carried out from June 2008 to June 2010 on a cross section of 220 mothers of under-five children who were managed for confirmed malaria within the study period and met the selection criteria were interviewed using a pretested, structured researcher administered questionnaire. The questionnaire instrument elicited information on family biosocial variables. Adherence was assessed in the previous 6 months and graded using an ordinal scoring system of 1-4 points: score of 4 points indicated adherence while scores of 1-3 points meant nonadherence. Operationally, an adherent respondent was defined as one who scored 4 points. An under-five child was defined to have malaria if the mother gave complaint of fever, vomiting and other symptoms suggestive of malaria, had body temperature exceeding 37.5 degrees C with the asexual forms Plasmodium falciparum detected on the peripheral blood film. Reasons for nonadherence were also sought. RESULTS: The adherence rate was 33.2%. The family biosocial variables significantly associated with adherence were maternal age =30 years (p-value = 0.03), maternal occupation (house wives) (p-value = 0.03), family size less than 4 (p-value = 0.026) and spouse living together (p-value = 0.01.). Others included family belief, in the benefits of ITNs (p-value = 0.002 and source of ITNs (p-value = 0.03). The most significant predictor of adherence was living together of spouse (p-value = 0.000, OR = 3.851, CI = 1.76-6.01). The commonest reason for non-adherence was forgetfulness (p-value = 0.003). CONCLUSION: Despite high family belief in the benefits of ITNs, adherence to its use was low. Some family biosocial variables played significant roles in driving its adherence. Measures targeted at these variables and widespread family-oriented health promotion programmes are recommended in order to improve on adherence leading to family friendly ITNs communities.

Development of fungal applications on netting substrates for malaria vector control.

Mosquito resistance to chemical insecticides is considered a serious threat for the sustainable use of contemporary malaria vector control methods. Fungal entomopathogens show potential as alternative biological control agents against (insecticide-resistant) anophelines. This study was designed to test whether the fungus, Beauveria bassiana, could be delivered to mosquitoes on netting materials that might be used in house screens, such as eave curtains. Tests were conducted to determine effects of formulation, application method, netting material, and nature of mosquito contact. Beauveria had a twice as high impact on Anopheles gambiae s.s. longevity when suspended in Shellsol solvent compared with Ondina oil (HR = 2.12, 95% confidence interval = 1.83-2.60, P < 0.001), and was significantly more infective when applied through spraying than dipping. Polyester and cotton bednets were the most effective substrates for mosquito infections, with highest spore viability on cotton nets. Whereas fungal impact was highest in mosquitoes that had passed through large-meshed impregnated nets, overall efficacy was equal between small- and large-meshed nets, with < or = 30-min spore contact killing >90% of mosquitoes within 10 d. Results indicate that the use of fungal spores dissolved in Shellsol and sprayed on small-meshed cotton eave curtain nets would be the most promising option for field implementation. Biological control with fungus-impregnated eave curtains could provide a means to target host-seeking mosquitoes upon house entry, and has potential for use in integrated vector management strategies, in combination with chemical vector control measures, to supplement malaria control in areas with high levels of insecticide resistance.

First report of the infection of insecticide-resistant malaria vector mosquitoes with an entomopathogenic fungus under field conditions.

BACKGROUND: Insecticide-resistant mosquitoes are compromising the ability of current mosquito control tools to control malaria vectors. A proposed new approach for mosquito control is to use entomopathogenic fungi. These fungi have been shown to be lethal to both insecticide-susceptible and insecticide-resistant mosquitoes under laboratory conditions. The goal of this study was to see whether entomopathogenic fungi could be used to infect insecticide-resistant malaria vectors under field conditions, and to see whether the virulence and viability of the fungal conidia decreased after exposure to ambient African field conditions. METHODS: This study used the fungus Beauveria bassiana to infect the insecticide-resistant malaria vector Anopheles gambiae s.s (Diptera: Culicidae) VKPER laboratory colony strain. Fungal conidia were applied to polyester netting and kept under West African field conditions for varying periods of time. The virulence of the fungal-treated netting was tested 1, 3 and 5 days after net application by exposing An. gambiae s.s. VKPER mosquitoes in WHO cone bioassays carried out under field conditions. In addition, the viability of B. bassiana conidia was measured after up to 20 days exposure to field conditions. RESULTS: The results show that B. bassiana infection caused significantly increased mortality with the daily risk of dying being increased by 2.5 × for the fungus-exposed mosquitoes compared to the control mosquitoes. However, the virulence of the B. bassiana conidia decreased with increasing time spent exposed to the field conditions, the older the treatment on the net, the lower the fungus-induced mortality rate. This is likely to be due to the climate because laboratory trials found no such decline within the same trial time period. Conidial viability also decreased with increasing exposure to the net and natural abiotic environmental conditions. After 20 days field exposure the conidial viability was 30%, but the viability of control conidia not exposed to the net or field conditions was 79%. CONCLUSIONS: This work shows promise for the use of B. bassiana fungal conidia against insecticide-resistant mosquitoes in the field, but further work is required to examine the role of environmental conditions on fungal virulence and viability with a view to eventually making the fungal conidia delivery system more able to withstand the ambient African climate.