Ann Microbiol Immunol | Volume 6, Issue 1 | Research Article | Open Access
Emade EV1, Cedric Y2*, Christelle Nadia NA3, Derick Ndelle Meduke4 and Payne VK1
1Department of Animal Biology, University of Dschang, Cameroon
2Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Bamenda, Cameroon
3Department of Microbiology, Hematology and Immunology, University of Dschang, Cameroon
*Correspondance to: [email protected]
Fulltext PDFBackground: Despite the package of interventions put in place by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to reduce malaria burden, the disease remains a public health problem. This study was therefore undertaken to detect Plasmodium infection in school children and evaluate the parents’/ guardians’ Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices (KAPs) pertaining to the disease in Tombel, Kupe- Muanenguba Division, South West Region, Cameroon. Method: A cross-sectional school-based study involving a total of 400 children with ages between 2 to 15 years was carried out in Tombel town to test for the presence and density of Plasmodium parasites using microscopy. Moreover, a semistructured questionnaire was given to the parents/ guardians to obtain useful information. Results: The overall prevalence of malaria in the study population was 63% and showed no statistically significant variation with gender, age, and body temperature. Prevalence was significantly (χ2=33.67, P=0.00021) higher in Standard Bilingual Nursery and Primary School (STABINAPS), Kingdom Bilingual Nursery and Primary School (KIBINAPS), Group I, Government Bilingual High School (GBHS) and Group II than the rest of the schools. The minimum, maximum, and Geometric Mean Parasite Densities (GMPD) were 100 parasites/μL of blood, 18,800 parasites/μl of blood, and 4,479 parasites/μl of blood, respectively. The geometric mean parasite density was significantly 7 times higher in children who had fever (16,469 parasites/μl of blood) than those who did not have fever (2,357 parasites/μl of blood) (P=3.45e-05). The overall knowledge on malaria was significantly dependent on gender, age, marital status, educational level, and occupation of parents/guardians (P<0.05). The statistically significant risk factors were: none use of mosquito bed nets, no treatment of the nets, and living in the quarters Peng, Ward I, Ward II, and Ward III (P<0.05). Conclusion: Malaria prevalence was high, and knowledge, attitudes, and practices were inappropriate. There is a need for more distribution of ITN and sensitization on the benefits of its usage alongside other control measures and environmental management in order to successfully curb the scourge which is malaria.
Malaria; Prevalence; Density; Knowledge; Attitude and Practices (KAPs); Tombel
Emade EV, Cedric Y, Christelle Nadia NA, Meduke DN, Payne VK. Plasmodium Infection in School Children, and Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices (KAP) of Parents/ Guardians in Tombel, Kupe- Muanenguba Division, South West Region, Cameroon. Ann Microbiol Immunol. 2023; 6(1): 1029..