title: The challenge of unreported and unprogrammed deworming for soil-transmitted helminth control programs.
abstract: Soil-transmitted helminthiasis (STH) affects more than one billion people worldwide. WHO aims to control STH as a public health problem by providing periodic anthelminthic treatment to ≥75% of all at-risk children. Tracking progress toward this 2020 goal relies on accurate reporting of drug coverage. For STH, this is difficult because an unknown-but substantial-proportion of deworming occurs outside nationally-administered STH control programs, so-called 'unprogrammed deworming.' Further, coordination of intersectoral efforts needed to administer drugs to different risk groups-and to report coverage to WHO-is inadequate. This paper describes these challenges and offers suggestions to overcome them.
authors: Children Without Worms, Task Force for Global Health, Decatur, GA 30030, USA daddiss@taskforce.org.
authors: David G
authors: DG
authors: Addiss
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000871:Anthelmintics / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000600:supply & distribution / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002648:Child; D006373:Helminthiasis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000517:prevention & control; D006801:Humans; D011634:Public Health; D012987:Soil / Q000469:parasitology*; D014944:World Health Organization
chemical_list: D000871:Anthelmintics; D012987:Soil
keywords: Anthelminthic; Coverage; Deworming; Intestinal worms; Neglected tropical diseases; Soil-transmitted helminthiasis