scholarly journals Ownership and disuse of bed nets in Kenyan children under five years of age

2012 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kacey Ernst ◽  
Mona Arora ◽  
Stephen Munga

Recent campaigns to increase the percentage of households owning a bed net have been very successful yet there remains a subset of the population who do not sleep under bed nets. We used data from the 2008 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey (KDHS) to compare children under the age of five years of age who slept under any bed net to children sleeping without a bed net who resided in households with: i) no bed net; ii) all bed nets used (intra-household access); and iii) at least one unused bed net. Ownership, intra-household access, and non-use of available bed nets were all associated with the child’s age and the mother’s relationship to the head of the household. Intra-household access was strongly associated with provincial residence, where the child was born and frequency of reading newspapers. Furthermore, disuse of available nets for children was associated with marital status, bed net use of the head of the household, and residing in rural communities at higher elevations. Improving bed net/long-lasting insecticide treated nets (LLIN) use in Kenya requires a multi-faceted approach that addresses the complexity of the behavioral, social and economic drivers of non-use.


2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Edward Kwabena Ameyaw ◽  
Kenneth Setorwu Adde ◽  
Shadrach Dare ◽  
Sanni Yaya

Abstract Background In 2018, Nigeria accounted for the highest prevalence of malaria worldwide. Pregnant women and children under five years bear the highest risk of malaria. Geographical factors affect utilization of insecticide-treated nets (ITN), yet existing literature have paid little attention to the rural–urban dimension of ITN utilization in Nigeria. This study aimed at investigating the rural–urban variation in ITN utilization among pregnant women in Nigeria using data from the 2018 Demographic and Health Survey. Methods A total of 2909 pregnant women were included in the study. The prevalence of ITN utilization for rural and urban pregnant women of Nigeria were presented with descriptive statistics. Chi-square test was employed to assess the association between residence, socio-demographic characteristics and ITN utilization at 95% level of significance. Subsequently, binary logistic regression was used to assess the influence of residence on ITN utilization. Results Eight out of ten of the rural residents utilized ITN (86.1%) compared with 74.1% among urban residents. Relative to urban pregnant women, those in rural Nigeria had higher odds of utilizing ITNs both in the crude [cOR = 2.17, CI = 1.66–2.84] and adjusted models [aOR = 1.18, CI = 1.05–1.24]. Pregnant women aged 40–44 had lower odds of ITN utilization compared to those aged 15–19 [aOR = 0.63, CI = 0.44–0.92]. Poorer pregnant women had higher odds of ITN utilization compared with poorest pregnant women [aOR = 1.09, CI = 1.04–1.32]. Across regions, those in the south [aOR = 0.26, CI = 0.14–0.49] and south-west [aOR = 0.29, CI = 0.16–0.54] had lower odds of ITN use compared to their counterparts in the north-west region. Conclusion The high use of ITNs among pregnant women in Nigeria may be due to the prioritization of rural communities by previous interventions. This is a dimension worth considering to enhance the attainment of the national anti-malarial initiatives. Since possession of ITN is not a guarantee for utilization, women in urban locations need constant reminder of ITN use through messages delivered at ANC and radio advertisements. Moreover, subsequent mass ITN campaigns ought to take cognizance of variations ITN use across regions and pragmatic steps be taken to increase the availability of ITN in households since there is a moderately high use in households with at least one ITN in Nigeria.



2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Calistus N. Ngonghala ◽  
Josephine Wairimu ◽  
Jesse Adamski ◽  
Hardik Desai

AbstractMalaria prevalence in sub-Saharan Africa remains high. Kenya for example, records about 3.5 million new cases and 11 thousand deaths each year [1]. Most of these cases and deaths are among children under five. The main control method in malaria endemic regions has been through the use of pyrethroid-treated bed nets. Although this approach has been fairly successful, the gains are threatened by mosquito-resistance to pyrethroids, physical and chemical degradation of ITNs that reduce their efficacy, inconsistent and improper use by humans, etc. We present a model to investigate the effects of insecticide-treated bed-net use and mosquito-resistance and adaptation to pyrethroids used to treat bed nets on malaria prevalence and control in malaria endemic regions. The model captures the development and loss of resistance to insecticides, the effects of bed-net use on malaria control in a setting where proper and consistent use is not guaranteed, as well as differentiated biting of human hosts by resistant and sensitive mosquitoes. Important thresholds, including the basic reproduction number R0, and two parameter groupings that are important for disease control and for establishing the existence of endemic equilibria to the model are calculated. Furthermore, a global sensitivity analysis is carried out to identify important parameters such as insecticide treated bed-net coverage, insecticide treated bed-net efficacy, the maximum biting rate of resistant mosquitoes, etc., that drive the system and that can be targeted for disease control. Threshold levels of bed-net coverage and bed-net efficacy required for containing the disease are identified and shown to depend on the type of insecticide-resistance. For example, when mosquito-resistance to insecticides is not permanent and is acquired only through recruitment and the efficacy of insecticide-treated nets is 90%, about 70% net coverage is required to contain malaria. However, for the same insecticide-treated net efficacy, i.e., 90%, approximately 93% net coverage is required to contain the disease when resistance to insecticides is permanent and is acquired through recruitment and mutation in mosquitoes. The model exhibits a backward bifurcation, which implies that simply reducing R0 slightly below unity might not be enough to contain the disease. We conclude that appropriate measures to reduce or eliminate mosquito-resistance to insecticides, ensure that more people in endemic areas own and use insecticide-treated nets properly, and that the efficacy of these nets remain high most of the times, as well as educating populations in malaria endemic areas on how to keep mosquito densities low and minimize mosquito bites are important for containing malaria.



2009 ◽  
Vol 77 (5) ◽  
pp. 1917-1923 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip Bejon ◽  
George Warimwe ◽  
Claire L. Mackintosh ◽  
Margaret J. Mackinnon ◽  
Sam M. Kinyanjui ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT In studies of immunity to malaria, the absence of febrile malaria is commonly considered evidence of “protection.” However, apparent “protection” may be due to a lack of exposure to infective mosquito bites or due to immunity. We studied a cohort that was given curative antimalarials before monitoring began and documented newly acquired asymptomatic parasitemia and febrile malaria episodes during 3 months of surveillance. With increasing age, there was a shift away from febrile malaria to acquiring asymptomatic parasitemia, with no change in the overall incidence of infection. Antibodies to the infected red cell surface were associated with acquiring asymptomatic infection rather than febrile malaria or remaining uninfected. Bed net use was associated with remaining uninfected rather than acquiring asymptomatic infection or febrile malaria. These observations suggest that most uninfected children were unexposed rather than “immune.” Had they been immune, we would have expected the proportion of uninfected children to rise with age and that the uninfected children would have been distinguished from children with febrile malaria by the protective antibody response. We show that removing the less exposed children from conventional analyses clarifies the effects of immunity, transmission intensity, bed nets, and age. Observational studies and vaccine trials will have increased power if they differentiate between unexposed and immune children.



2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juwel Rana ◽  
Md Nuruzzaman Khan ◽  
Rakibul M Islam ◽  
Razia Aliani ◽  
Youssef Oulhote

Abstract Background: Household air pollution (HAP) from solid fuel use (SFU) for cooking has been considered a public health threat, particularly for women and children in low and middle-income countries (LMICs), with limited evidence. This study was undertaken to investigate the effects of HAP on neonatal, infant, and under-five child mortality in Myanmar. Methods: This cross-sectional study employed data from the Myanmar Demographic and Health Survey (MDHS), the first nationally representative survey conducted in 2016. Data were collected from MDHS based on stratified two-stage cluster sampling design applied in urban and rural areas. The sample consists of 3249 under-five children in the household with a 98% response rate. Exposure measures were HAP (coal and biomass) and level of exposure to HAP (no exposure, moderate and high exposure). The main outcomes were neonatal, infant, and under-five child mortality reported by mothers presented in rates and risk ratios with 95% confidence intervals, accounting for survey weight and cluster variation. Results: The prevalence of SFU was 79.0%. The neonatal, infant and under-five child mortality rates were 26, 45, and 49 per 1,000 live births, respectively. The risks of infant (aRR 2.02; 95% CI: 1.01-4.05) and under-five mortality (aRR 2.16; 95% CI: 1.07-4.36) mortality were higher among children from households with SFU compared to children from households using clean fuel. When applying an augmented measure of exposure to HAP by incorporating SFU and the kitchen's location, the likelihoods of infant and under-five mortality were even higher among moderate and highly exposed children than unexposed children with similar trends. Neonatal mortality was not associated with either HAP exposure or levels of exposure to HAP.Conclusion: Infants and under-five children are at higher risk of mortality from exposure to HAP. Increasing access to cookstoves and clean fuels is imperative to reduce the risk of infant and under-five child mortality in LMICs, including Myanmar.



2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mesfin Wudu Kassaw ◽  
Aele Mamo ◽  
Biruk Abate ◽  
Ayelign Kassie ◽  
Seteamlak Masresha

Abstract Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence and association of child mortality in the pastoralist regions of Ethiopia. The study is a further analysis from 2016 Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey data. Results: The prevalence of under-five child mortality in the pastoralist’s regions was 23.2%, 95%CI (21.4%, 24.6%). The prevalence of mortality among daughters was 15.4%, 95%CI (14.2, 16.6%), and sons 16.8%, 95%CI (15.6, 18.1%).In logistic regression, wealth index, head of household, Khat chewing, type of child birth, husband education, and child age in months were associated with under-five mortality irrespective of the deceased children’s gender. The prevalence of under-five child mortality in the pastoralist regions of Ethiopia was high, which was far highest in relative to the national under-five mortality prevalence. In assessing the effect of variables on under-five child mortality by gender, almost all the variables that have an effect on female or male child are similar. The government should emphasize on the pastoralists’ regions to decrease the high prevalence of under-five child mortality.



PLoS ONE ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (7) ◽  
pp. e103780 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jian-wei Xu ◽  
Yuan-mei Liao ◽  
Hui Liu ◽  
Ren-hua Nie ◽  
Joshua Havumaki


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Asmamaw Atnafu ◽  
Malede Mequanent Sisay ◽  
Getu Debalkie Demissie ◽  
Zemenu Tadesse Tessema

Abstract Background: Childhood diarrheal illness is the second leading cause of child mortality in Sub Saharan Africa, including Ethiopia. Studies hypothesized that there are regional variations. Thus, the study aimed to examine the spatial variations and to identify the determinants of childhood diarrhea in Ethiopia. Methods: Data from the 2016 Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey (EDHS) was analyzed. This nationwide survey involved 10,337 children below 5 years old. The survey was carried out using a two-stage stratified sampling design. Moran’s I and LISA were used to detect the spatial clustering of diarrhea cases and to test for clustering in the data. Descriptive statistics followed by a mixed-effect logistic regression was used to identify the factors associated with the prevalence of diarrhea. Results: Overall, 11.87% of children were experienced childhood diarrheal illness. The study reveals high-risk areas were Southern and central Ethiopia, while eastern and west were indicated as low-risk regions. Younger children were more likely to suffer from childhood diarrhea than their older counterparts: age 6 to 12, 12 to 23, and 24 to 35 months were (AOR = 2.66, (95% CI 2.01, 3.52)), (AOR = 2.45, (95% CI 1.89, 3.17)), and (AOR = 1.53, (95% CI 1.17, 2.01)), respectively. Children living in Tigray (AOR= 1.69 (95% CI, 1.01, 2.83)), Amhara (AOR = 1.80, (95% CI, 1.06, 3.06), SNNPR (AOR = 2.04, 95% CI 1.22, 3.42), and Gambela (AOR = 2.05, (95% CI 1.22, 3.42)), faced greater risk than Addis Ababa city. The odds of getting diarrhea is decreased by 24% among households having ≥3 under-five children as compared to households having only one under-five child (AOR = 0.76 (95% CI: 0.61, 0.94)). The odds of children getting diarrheal illness among working mothers increase by 19% as compared to not working (AOR = 1.19 (95% CI 1.03, 1.38)). Conclusions: childhood diarrheal illness is highly prevalent among under-five children, particularly in SNNP, Gambella, Oromia, and Benishangul Gumuz regions. Capacity building programs with best experience sharing and better household environment may prove effective in reducing the incidence of childhood diarrhea in Ethiopia. Keywords: Spatial statistics, Ethiopia, under-five children, Diarrhea, Generalized Mixed Model



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