The prevalence of symptomatic and asymptomatic malaria and its associated factors in Debre Elias district communities, Northwest Ethiopia

Abstract Background Malaria is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. According to the World Health Organization 2021 malaria report, it is considered to be endemic in 85 countries and territories. Malaria elimination programmes have also faced many challenges, such as widespread asympt...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Malaria Journal
Main Authors: Abtie Abebaw, Yibeltal Aschale, Tadesse Kebede, Asrat Hailu
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: BMC 2022
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12936-022-04194-7
https://doaj.org/article/daa14ccf9308468d9fed641f1623d6c5
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Summary:Abstract Background Malaria is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. According to the World Health Organization 2021 malaria report, it is considered to be endemic in 85 countries and territories. Malaria elimination programmes have also faced many challenges, such as widespread asymptomatic carriers in endemic regions, and they should be considered in malaria-control programmes in endemic areas for successful transmission interruption. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of symptomatic and asymptomatic malaria infections, and associated factors in Debre Elias district communities, Northwest Ethiopia from May to Jun 2018. Methods A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among selected kebeles in Debre Elias district, Amhara region, North-western Ethiopia. Multi-stage sampling technique was carried out to select representative households. A total of 440 randomly selected households were included, of which one individual per household was sampled for laboratory examination. Malaria prevalence was determined by light microscopy of stained blood films and using CareStart™ Malaria HRP2/pLDH (Pf/Pv) Combo rapid diagnostic test (RDT). A structured questionnaire was employed to collect socio-demographic data and associated risk factors. Data entry and analysis were carried out using Epi data 3.1 and SPSS version 23 software, respectively. The association between dependent and independent variables was explored by using bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses. Statistically significant association was declared at P-value of < 0.05. Results A total of 440 (333 asymptomatic and 107 symptomatic) individuals were included in this study. The overall prevalence of malaria was 5% with the majority (59.1%) of infections caused by Plasmodium falciparum. Among asymptomatic participants, 4.8% (n = 16, 95% CI = 2.6–7.3) and 4.2% (n = 14, 95% CI = 2.1–6.5) were diagnosed and confirmed by RDT and light microscopy respectively. Similarly, the prevalence of malaria among 107 ...