Vector Control Research Centre, Medical Complex, Indira Nagar, Pondicherry, 605 006, India.
Int J Public Health. 2011 Feb;56(1):25-36. doi: 10.1007/s00038-010-0159-y. Epub 2010 Jun 15.
To assess the socio-economic determinants, knowledge and practices on lymphatic filariasis in India and discuss the implications for elimination.
A case-control study was undertaken to obtain knowledge and practice measures on various dimensions of the Wuchereria bancroftian filarial disease using a structured questionnaire. A structural equation model, a statistical technique for testing and estimating causal relationships using a combination of statistical data and qualitative causal assumptions, was developed.
Among the affected individuals, the model was able to explain more than 90% of the variance in awareness about the lymphatic filariasis, 58% of the variance in prevention aspects of the disease and 24% of the variance in people's knowledge about mosquitoes. The corresponding values in non-infected individuals were 49, 24 and 34%, respectively. A significant positive effect of education on awareness and prevention aspects of the disease was noted among the non-infected individuals. However, among the affected individuals, the awareness on various aspects of the disease was completely absent.
The present analysis highlights the crucial role played by formal education on creating awareness about lymphatic filariasis and how to prevent this vector-borne disease. The importance of education on intervention measures against mosquito breeding and biting is also dealt with in the analysis for planning an effective and sustainable control program.
评估印度淋巴丝虫病的社会经济决定因素、知识和实践情况，并讨论消除该病的影响。
采用病例对照研究，使用结构化问卷获取关于班氏丝虫病各方面的知识和实践措施。开发了结构方程模型，这是一种使用统计数据和定性因果假设的组合来测试和估计因果关系的统计技术。
在受影响的个体中，该模型能够解释淋巴丝虫病意识方面超过 90%的方差、疾病预防方面 58%的方差和人们对蚊子的认识方面 24%的方差。在未感染个体中，相应的值分别为 49、24 和 34%。在未感染个体中，教育对疾病意识和预防方面有显著的积极影响。然而，在受影响的个体中，对疾病的各个方面的意识完全不存在。
目前的分析强调了正规教育在提高对淋巴丝虫病的认识以及如何预防这种媒介传播疾病方面的关键作用。分析还涉及了教育对干预措施以控制蚊子滋生和叮咬的重要性，以便规划有效和可持续的控制计划。
