title: Do bednets reduce malaria transmission by exophagic mosquitoes?
abstract: The impact of bednet coverage on malaria prevalence in a suburb of São Tomé was monitored, by passive case detection, over a three-year period (1997-1999), when bednet use increased from 20 to 74%. Malaria parasites were detected in 1651 (41.6%) of the 3967 slides taken during the study. All four human malaria parasites were seen, with Plasmodium falciparum being the predominant species (94.9% of positive slides). Prevalence of malaria among residents decreased, particularly in 1-4 year olds. In addition, there was a concomitant decrease in prevalence also among non-net users, suggesting a mass effect on transmission, even though the only vector in the area is largely exophagic and zoophilic.
authors.affiliation: DBL Institute for Health, Research and Development, Jaergersborg Allé 1-D, Charlottenlund, DK 2920, Denmark.
authors.forename: J Derek
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Charlwood
authors.forename: João
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Alcântara
authors.forename: João
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pinto
authors.forename: Carla A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Sousa
authors.forename: Herodes
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Rompão
authors.forename: Vilfrido
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Gil
authors.forename: Virgílio E do
authors.initials: VE
authors.lastname: Rosário
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000818:Animals; D000852:Anopheles; D001266:Atlantic Islands / Q000453:epidemiology; D001512:Bedding and Linens / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007299:Insect Bites and Stings / Q000517:prevention & control; D007303:Insect Vectors; D007306:Insecticides; D008288:Malaria / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000635:transmission; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009032:Mosquito Control / Q000379:methods*; D010961:Plasmodium / Q000302:isolation & purification; D015995:Prevalence
chemical_list: D007306:Insecticides