Potential herd protection against Plasmodium falciparum infections conferred by mass antimalarial drug administrations
Year: 2019
Type: article
Abstract: The global malaria burden has decreased over the last decade and many nations are attempting elimination. Asymptomatic malaria infections are not normally diagnosed or treated, posing a major hurdle for elimination efforts. One solution to this problem is mass drug administration (MDA), with success depending on adequate population participation. Here, we present a detailed spatial and temporal analysis of malaria episodes and asymptomatic infections in four villages undergoing MDA in Myanmar. In this study, individuals from neighborhoods with low MDA adherence had 2.85 times the odds of having a malaria episode post-MDA in comparison to those from high adherence neighborhoods, regardless of individual participation, suggesting a herd effect. High mosquito biting rates, living in a house with someone else with malaria, or having an asymptomatic malaria infection were also predictors of clinical episodes. Spatial clustering of non-adherence to MDA, even in villages with high overall participation, may frustrate elimination efforts.
Source: eLife
DOI: 10.7554/elife.41023
Institutions: University of California, Irvine, Mahidol University, University of Oxford, Mahidol Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit, Shoklo Malaria Research Unit, Université de Montpellier, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Maladies Infectieuses et Vecteurs: Écologie, Génétique, Évolution et Contrôle, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Montpellier, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Harvard University
Language: English
Topic: Malaria Research and Control
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,492
Awards: Eliminating malaria to counter artemisinin resistance., University of Oxford - to assess the micro-epidemiology of resistant falciparum malaria in South East Asia and to perform and evaluate an intervention with targeted chemo..., Targeting malaria hotspots in Myanmar: An individual-based modeling approach, Targeting malaria hotspots in Myanmar: An individual-based modeling approach, G6240353653, Eliminating malaria to counter artemisinin resistance.
OpenAlex ID: W2938201679