Large-Scale Deployment of Pyriproxyfen-Treated Lehmann Funnel Entry Traps to Control Malaria Mosquito Populations
Abstract Background: The Lehmann Funnel Entry Trap has proven to be effective in catching and killing up to 70% of mosquitoes even in a high mosquito density setting. A medium-sized prototype was selected and deployed at large scale in Vallée du Kou 3 (VK3) in the Southwest of Burkina Faso to assess its entomological and sociological impact.Method: Overall, 1,313 traps impregnated with Pyriproxyfen (PPF), were deployed. Of them, 12 traps were randomly selected across the intervention village compared to houses without traps in the control village, Vallée du Kou 5 (VK5). Traps were placed at the windows while doors were blocked with curtains. Mosquitoes were collected in traps and matching houses in VK3 and in houses only in VK5, for nine days per month from July to October 2015. Collected mosquitoes were morphologically identified, counted, and preserved in 80% ethanol vials for subsequent analyses, including resistance genes and female mosquito age structure. The impact of the trap on mosquito density at community level was assessed by performing a pyrethrum spray catch (PSC) with bioassays to assess the effect of PPF. Results: Overall mosquito density was reduced by ~90% in all houses equipped with traps in VK3. At the community level, while mosquito density before intervention was 33% higher in VK3 than in VK5, it was 47% higher in VK5 after the intervention. Old female mosquito numbers increased in VK5 by 12% in October but not in VK3, indicating that the traps were cumulatively killing old females. The additional effect of PPF was to limit egg-laying, with a smaller number of eggs counted, and with a low hatching rate. Mosquitoes were highly resistant to pyrethroids with ~0.9 frequency of the kdr mutation. The trap was well accepted by the communities as 85.4% and 93.8% of interviewees in VK3 found the traps reducing mosquito bites with peaceful sleep respectively. Conclusion: The Lehmann Funnel Entry Trap has real potential to control malaria mosquito populations and can be widely used to sustain the global effort of malaria elimination.