Progress toward global eradication of dracunculiasis, January 2004-July 2005.

In 1986, an estimated 3.5 million cases of dracunculiasis occurred in 20 countries, and 120 million persons were at risk for the disease. That year, the World Health Assembly adopted a resolution calling for the eradication of dracunculiasis, also known as Guinea worm disease. This report describes the status of the global dracunculiasis eradication program as of July 2005, indicating that, during January-July 2005, a total of 8,191 indigenous cases of dracunculiasis were reported from nine countries, with at least 150 million persons at risk. Despite the substantial reductions in dracunculiasis cases since 1986, eradication of dracunculiasis will require international commitment and ongoing surveillance and intensified interventions at national, state, and local levels.