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Water sources and other determinants of dracunculiasis in the Northern Region of Ghana

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 June 2009

A. Tayeh ,
S. Cairncross  and
G. H. Maude
A. Tayeh
Affiliation:
Department of Epidemiology and Population Science, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Keppel Street, London WCIE 7HT, UK
S. Cairncross
Affiliation:
Department of Epidemiology and Population Science, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Keppel Street, London WCIE 7HT, UK
G. H. Maude
Affiliation:
UNICEF/WHO Interagency Team for Dracunculiasis Eradication, Quagadougou, Burkina Faso
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Abstract

This paper describes a study carried out in a rural area of Ghana on the drinking water sources and other determinants of dracunculiasis (guinea worm disease). The results confirm the association between water source choice and the prevalence of the disease. A logistic regression model was used to show the combined effect of several behavioural, biological, and environmental risk factors. The important behavioural factors were related to the head of household, fetching of water, travelling, and farming. Age was found to be an important biological risk factor for dracunculiasis, but the greatest relative risk applied to those who had suffered from guinea worm disease in the previous year. Although males were significantly more infected than females when analysing the raw data, sex did not prove to be a significant risk factor in this model. Village of residence was an important environmental risk factor for dracunculiasis. Factors related to socio-economic status were not associated with the risk of infection. The paper concludes by presenting the policy implications of the study findings.

Keywords

Dracunculus medinensismanGhanaepidemiologyprevalencewater sourceNematoda
Type
Research Papers
Information
Journal of Helminthology , Volume 67 , Issue 3 , September 1993 , pp. 213 - 225
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1993

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