Knowledge of lymphatic filariasis among the population of an endemic area in rural Madhya Pradesh, India
Das, D.; Kumar, S.; Dash, A.P.; Babu, B.V.
Annals of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology 99(1): 101-104
2005
ISSN/ISBN: 0003-4983 PMID: 15701261 DOI: 10.1179/136485905x17416Document Number: 239432
A study was conducted to determine how much the subjects living in four randomly chosen villages in Panna district, Madhya Pradesh, central India knew about lymphatic filariasis (LF). 421 subjects (288 asymptomatic and 133 symptomatic, aged 10-60 years, similar number of males and females) were interviewed. The results showed that there was no single Hindi term for LF in the study area. The most commonly used terms for lymphoedema/elephantiasis and hydrocele appeared to be hatipaon and potha, respectively. Many of the symptomatic (45.8%) and asymptomatic (35.3%) respondents claimed that they did not know the cause of LF. Forty-one percent of symptomatic and 33% of asymptomatic individuals correctly stated that LF resulted from the bites of infected mosquitoes. There was a significant correlation between the level of formal education of a respondent and the reply that mosquito bite was the cause of LF. It is concluded that LF is known to the subjects in the study area and most respondents are familiar with the various manifestations of LF, along with their local names.