Distribution and prevalence of cases of microfilaraemia in Indonesia.

Blood smear surveys were conducted in principal villages on the major islands of Indonesia to determine the microfilarial rates presently existing in the populations. A total of 163,454 persons were examined and 10.8 percent found positive for microfilariae of Wuchereria bancrofti, Brugia malayi or Brugia timori. The highest prevalence rates were found in Nusatenggara-Maluku-Irian Jaya (15.5%) followed by Sulawesi (13.7%) Kalimantan (10.8%) Sumatera (8.9%) and Jawa and Bali (1.7%). Many areas endemic for filariasis are used for the settlement of transmigrants from non-filarial endemic areas. Control program must therefore be implemented to prevent filarial infections in these new susceptible population groups.