Korean J Parasitol.
2015 Oct;53(5):571-574. 10.3347/kjp.2015.53.5.571.
High Malaria Prevalence among Schoolchildren on Kome Island, Tanzania
- Affiliations
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- 1Department of Parasitology and Tropical Medicine, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul 03080, Korea. cjy@snu.ac.kr
- 2Department of Parasitology and Medical Research Institute, Chungbuk National University School of Medicine, Cheongju 28644, Korea.
- 3Department of Environmental Medical Biology and Institute of Tropical Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 03722, Korea.
- 4Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Eulji University College of Medicine, Daejeon 34824, Korea.
- 5National Institute of Medical Research, Mwanza, Tanzania.
- 6Good Neighbors International, Tanzania Western Chapter, Mwanza, Tanzania.
- 7Department of Parasitology, College of Medicine, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Korea.
- KMID: 2381779
- DOI: http://doi.org/10.3347/kjp.2015.53.5.571
Abstract
- In order to determine the status of malaria among schoolchildren on Kome Island (Lake Victoria), near Mwanza, Tanzania, a total of 244 schoolchildren in 10 primary schools were subjected to a blood survey using the fingerprick method. The subjected schoolchildren were 123 boys and 121 girls who were 6-8 years of age. Only 1 blood smear was prepared for each child. The overall prevalence of malaria was 38.1% (93 positives), and sex difference was not remarkable. However, the positive rate was the highest in Izindabo Primary School (51.4%) followed by Isenyi Primary School (48.3%) and Bugoro Primary School (46.7%). The lowest prevalence was found in Muungano Primary School (16.7%) and Nyamiswi Primary School (16.7%). These differences were highly correlated with the location of the school on the Island; those located in the peripheral area revealed higher prevalences while those located in the central area showed lower prevalences. Plasmodium falciparum was the predominant species (38.1%; 93/244), with a small proportion of them mixed-infected with Plasmodium vivax (1.6%; 4/244). The results revealed that malaria is highly prevalent among primary schoolchildren on Kome Island, Tanzania, and there is an urgent need to control malaria in this area.
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