School of Medical Laboratory Sciences, Institute of Health, Jimma University, Jimma, Ethiopia.
National Blood Bank Jimma Branch, Jimma, Ethiopia.
BMC Public Health. 2024 Oct 18;24(1):2878. doi: 10.1186/s12889-024-20405-z.
Malaria continues to represent an important public health problem in Ethiopia. The expansion of irrigated agricultural development projects turns out to be a major impediment to long-lasting and sustainable malaria prevention and control efforts in the country. The aim of this study was to determine the micro-epidemiology of malaria and associated risk factors in and around Gojeb Horizon Irrigation Plantation in southwest Ethiopia.
A community-based comparative cross-sectional study was conducted from May to June 2018 in Gimbo District, southwest Ethiopia. A total of 186 households (94 from irrigated village and 92 from non-irrigated village) were randomly selected from among the communities living around the Gojeb Horizon plantation. In total, 718 individuals (368 from irrigated village and 350 from non-irrigated village) were recruited from the selected households. A finger-prick blood sample was obtained from each participant. Socio-demographic data from the households and individual study participants were collected using a semi-structured questionnaire. Multivariate regression was used to assess factors associated with micro-epidemiology of malaria. P-value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.
The prevalence of malaria in irrigated and non-irrigated villages was 8.2% and 3.4%, respectively. Plasmodium falciparum, Plasmodium vivax and mixed infections accounted for 57.1%, 38.1%, and 4.8% of the cases, respectively. Individuals living in the irrigated villages were 2.53 (95% CI: 1.23-5.20) times at higher risk of Plasmodium infection as compared to those living in the non-irrigated village. Age (AOR = 1.03, 95% CI: 1.01-1.06) and non-use of long-lasting insecticidal net (AOR = 2.72, 95% CI: 1.03-7.22) were co-predictors of malaria infection in the area.
This study revealed that communities living in irrigation village were at a higher risk of Plasmodium infection than those living in non-irrigated village, which necessitates the development of tailored interventions that are both targeted and customized.
疟疾在埃塞俄比亚仍然是一个重要的公共卫生问题。灌溉农业发展项目的扩大，是该国疟疾防治工作难以持久和可持续的主要障碍。本研究旨在确定埃塞俄比亚西南部 Gojeb 天际灌溉种植园及其周边地区的疟疾微观流行病学和相关危险因素。
2018 年 5 月至 6 月在埃塞俄比亚西南部 Gimbo 区进行了一项基于社区的对比性横断面研究。从 Gojeb 天际种植园周围的社区中随机选择了 186 户（灌溉村 94 户，非灌溉村 92 户）。从选定的家庭中总共招募了 718 人（灌溉村 368 人，非灌溉村 350 人）。从每个参与者的指尖采集血样。使用半结构式问卷收集家庭和个体研究参与者的社会人口学数据。采用多变量回归评估与疟疾微观流行病学相关的因素。P 值<0.05 被认为具有统计学意义。
灌溉村和非灌溉村的疟疾患病率分别为 8.2%和 3.4%。恶性疟原虫、间日疟原虫和混合感染分别占病例的 57.1%、38.1%和 4.8%。与居住在非灌溉村的人相比，居住在灌溉村的人感染疟原虫的风险高 2.53 倍（95%CI：1.23-5.20）。年龄（AOR=1.03，95%CI：1.01-1.06）和不使用长效驱虫蚊帐（AOR=2.72，95%CI：1.03-7.22）是该地区疟疾感染的共同预测因子。
本研究表明，与居住在非灌溉村的人相比，居住在灌溉村的人感染疟原虫的风险更高，因此需要制定有针对性和定制化的干预措施。
