Conroy R M, Elmore-Meegan M, Joyce T, McGuigan K G, Barnes J
Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, Dublin.
Lancet. 1996;348(9043):1695-7. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(96)02309-4.
Solar radiation reduces the bacterial content of water, and may therefore offer a method for disinfection of drinking water that requires few resources and no expertise.
We distributed plastic water bottles to 206 Maasai children aged 5-16 years whose drinking water was contaminated with faecal coliform bacteria. Children were instructed to fill the bottle with water and leave it in full sunlight on the roof of the hut (solar group), or to keep their filled bottles indoors in the shade (control group). A Maasai-speaking fieldworker who lived in the community interviewed the mother of each child once every 2 weeks for 12 weeks. Occurrence and severity of diarrhoea was recorded at each follow-up visit.
Among the 108 children in households allocated solar treatment, diarrhoea was reported in 439 of the 2-week reporting periods during the 12-week trial (average 4.1 [SD 1.2] per child). By comparison, the 98 children in the control households reported diarrhoea during 444 2-week reporting periods (average 4.5 [1.2] per child). Diarrhoea severe enough to prevent performance of duties occurred during 186 reporting periods in the solar group and during 222 periods in the control group (average 1.7 [1.2] vs 2.3 [1.4]). After adjustment for age, solar treatment of drinking water was associated with a reduction in all diarrhoea episodes (odds ratio 0.66 [0.50-0.87]) and in episodes of severe diarrhoea (0.65 [0.50-0.86]).
Our findings suggest that solar disinfection of water may significantly reduce morbidity in communities with no other means of disinfection of drinking water, because of lack of resources or in the event of a disaster.
太阳辐射可降低水中细菌含量，因此可能提供一种所需资源少且无需专业知识的饮用水消毒方法。
我们向206名5至16岁的马赛儿童分发了塑料水瓶，这些儿童的饮用水被粪便大肠菌群污染。我们指示儿童将瓶子装满水，然后放在小屋屋顶上充分接受阳光照射（太阳组），或者将装满水的瓶子放在室内阴凉处（对照组）。一名居住在该社区、会说马赛语的现场工作人员，每2周对每个孩子的母亲进行一次为期12周的访谈。每次随访时记录腹泻的发生情况和严重程度。
在分配接受太阳处理的家庭中的108名儿童中，在为期12周的试验期间，2周报告期内有439次报告出现腹泻（每个儿童平均4.1次[标准差1.2次]）。相比之下，对照组的98名儿童在444个2周报告期内报告了腹泻（每个儿童平均4.5次[1.2次]）。太阳组有186个报告期出现严重到足以妨碍履行职责的腹泻，对照组有222个报告期出现此类情况（平均1.7次[1.2次]对2.3次[1.4次]）。在对年龄进行调整后，饮用水的太阳处理与所有腹泻发作次数减少（优势比0.66[0.50 - 0.87]）以及严重腹泻发作次数减少（0.65[0.50 - 0.86]）相关。
我们的研究结果表明，由于缺乏资源或在灾难情况下，对水进行太阳能消毒可能会显著降低没有其他饮用水消毒手段的社区的发病率。
