Redistribution of glossina in a forest area of Ivory Coast?
Dagnogo, M.; Yapi, Y.; Traore, G.; Kone, M.
Medecine Tropicale Revue du Corps de Sante Colonial 57(3): 265-268
1997
ISSN/ISBN: 0025-682X PMID: 9513155 Document Number: 478520
Historically the region of Abengourou is a well-known of sleeping sickness in the forest area of Cote d'Ivoire. However data from epidemiologic studies carried out since 1980 show that this area is currently disease-free. This finding warrants study of glossina vectors to clarify the epidemiology of the disease in this area. Entomologic surveys were carried out over a period of one year. Traps were used to capture glossina in ten natural habitats: villages with or without pigs, coffee, cocoa and rice plantations, grazing lands, camping areas, uncultivated farmlands, trails, forest borderlands and wilderness. Findings documented almost total disappearance of zoophilic glossina (Glossina nigrofusca and Glossina pallicera) which accounted for less than 0.5% of glossina captured only during the rainy season. The apparent trap density (ATD) of Glossina palpalis, the main vector of disease, was low overall. However ATD values tended to be higher in villages with pigs (ATD : 2.07 glossina/trap/day) and forest borderlands (ATD : 2.63 glossina/trap/day) than in other habitants where values were always lower than 1 glossina/trap/day. This almost complete disappearance of Glossina palpalis can be attributed mainly to deforestation in most of the areas studied. This accounts for reduced contact with man. The absence of contact between man and anthropophilic glossins could explain that unlike Daloa and Vavoua sleeping sickness has disappeared from the region of Abengourou.