Sustained protection against mortality and morbidity from malaria in rural Gambian children by chemoprophylaxis given by village health workers

Menon, A.; Snow, R.W.; Byass, P.; Greenwood, B.M.; Hayes, R.J.; N'Jie, A.B.

Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene 84(6): 768-772

1990


ISSN/ISBN: 0035-9203
PMID: 2096501
DOI: 10.1016/0035-9203(90)90071-l
Document Number: 375789
Mortality and morbidity from malaria were measured in children for a one-year period in a rural area of The Gambia 3-4 years after the introduction of a primary health care programme into some villages in the study area. Among children resident in primary health care villages who received treatment for febrile illnesses from a village health worker resident in their village there was no reduction in overall mortality or in morbidity from malaria compared with levels found in villages without a primary health care worker. However, among children aged 3-59 months who received malaria chemoprophylaxis from a village health worker in addition to treatment there was a 49% reduction in mortality and a 73% reduction in attacks of clinical malaria. The level of protection against malaria achieved by chemoprophylaxis given by village health workers 3-4 years after the chemoprophylaxis programme was started was as high as that obtained shortly after the introduction of the primary health care programme.

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Sustained protection against mortality and morbidity from malaria in rural Gambian children by chemoprophylaxis given by village health workers