Albendazole-ivermectin co-formulation for the treatment of Trichuris trichiura and other soil-transmitted helminths: a randomised phase 2/3 trial.

Background: Treatments for soil-transmitted helminthiases face challenges, especially in addressing Trichuris trichiura. Combination regimens, particularly of ivermectin and albendazole, are promising. We aimed to assess the safety, efficacy, and palatability of a combination tablet for the treatment of T trichiura, hookworm, and Strongyloides stercoralis infections among school-aged children in Ethiopia, Kenya, and Mozambique.

Cost-effectiveness of comparative survey designs for helminth control programs: Post-hoc cost analysis and modelling of the Kenyan national school-based deworming program.

Background: Soil-transmitted helminths (STH) and schistosomiasis comprise the most wide-spread NTDs globally. Preventative chemotherapy is a cost-effective approach to controlling morbidity of both diseases, but relies on large scale surveys to determine and revise treatment frequency. Availability of detailed information on survey costs is limited despite recent methodological surveying innovations.

Helminthiasis and malaria co-infection among women of reproductive age in a rural setting of Kilifi County, coastal Kenya: A mixed method study.

Soil transmitted helminthiasis (STH), Schistosoma haematobium and malaria co-infection lead to increased susceptibility to other infections and poor pregnancy outcomes among women of reproductive age (WRA). This study sought to establish risk factors, burden of co-infection with STH, S. haematobium and Plasmodium sp.

Identifying Potential Determinants of Faecal Contamination on Domestic Floors in Three Settings in Rural Kenya: A Mixed Methods Analysis.

Observational evidence suggests that household floors may be an important domain for the transmission of enteric and parasitic infections. However, little work has been done to investigate how household floors can become contaminated with human and animal faeces. This study uses a mixed methods approach to postulate the proximal and distal determinants of household floor contamination with faeces in groups of rural villages in 3 counties in Kenya (Bungoma, Kwale and Narok).

Exploring factors associated with infection in school children in a high-transmission setting in Kenya.

Objectives: Kenya has implemented a national school-based deworming program, which has led to substantial decline in the prevalence of soil-transmitted helminths (STHs), although some pockets of infections remain. To effectively design an STH control program that leads to significant reductions of there is a need to understand the drivers of persistent infection despite ongoing treatment programs.

Methods: This study was conducted between July and September 2019 at the south coast of Kenya, using a two-stage sampling design.

Optimal control analysis of a transmission interruption model for the soil-transmitted helminth infections in Kenya.

Kenya is among the countries endemic for soil-transmitted helminthiasis (STH) with over 66 subcounties and over 6 million individuals being at-risk of infection. Currently, the country is implementing mass drug administration (MDA) to all the at-risk groups as the mainstay control strategy. This study aimed to develop and analyze an optimal control (OC) model, from a transmission interruption model, to obtain an optimal control strategy from a mix of three strategies evaluated.

Impact of a disability-targeted microentrepreneurship programme in Kenya: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial of the InBusiness programme.

Background: There is a lack of evidence on the effectiveness of livelihood interventions amongst people with disabilities. In many countries, self-employment or microentrepreneurship is a dominant source of livelihoods for people with disabilities and their caregivers. However, this group may face heightened barriers to successful microentrepreneurship, including discrimination, exclusion from training or inaccessible transport, infrastructure and communication systems.

Spatial variation and clustering of anaemia prevalence in school-aged children in Western Kenya.

Anaemia surveillance has overlooked school-aged children (SAC), hence information on this age group is scarce. This study examined the spatial variation of anaemia prevalence among SAC (5-14 years) in western Kenya, a region associated with high malaria infection rates. A total of 8051 SAC were examined from 82 schools across eight counties in Western Kenya in February 2022.

Model-based geostatistical design and analysis of prevalence for soil-transmitted helminths in Kenya: Results from ten-years of the Kenya national school-based deworming programme.

Background: Kenya is endemic for soil-transmitted helminths (STH) with over 6 million children in 27 counties currently at-risk. A national school-based deworming programme (NSBDP) was launched in 2012 with a goal to eliminate parasitic worms as a public health problem. This study used model-based geostatistical (MBG) approach to design and analyse the impact of the NSBDP and inform treatment strategy changes.

A positive consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic: how the counterfactual experience of school closures is accelerating a multisectoral response to the treatment of neglected tropical diseases.

Global access to deworming treatment is one of the public health success stories of low-income countries in the twenty-first century. Parasitic worm infections are among the most ubiquitous chronic infections of humans, and early success with mass treatment programmes for these infections was the key catalyst for the neglected tropical disease (NTD) agenda. Since the launch of the 'London Declaration' in 2012, school-based deworming programmes have become the world's largest public health interventions.

How important is the spatial movement of people in attempts to eliminate the transmission of human helminth infections by mass drug administration?

Human mobility contributes to the spatial dynamics of many infectious diseases, and understanding these dynamics helps us to determine the most effective ways to intervene and plan surveillance. In this paper, we describe a novel transmission model for the spatial dynamics of hookworm, a parasitic worm which is a common infection across sub-Saharan Africa, East Asia and the Pacific islands. We fit our model, with and without mobility, to data obtained from a sub-county in Kenya, and validate the model's predictions against the decline in prevalence observed over the course of a clustered randomized control trial evaluating methods of administering mass chemotherapy.

An adaptive phase II/III safety and efficacy randomized controlled trial of single day or three-day fixed-dose albendazole-ivermectin co-formulation versus albendazole for the treatment of and other STH infections. ALIVE trial protocol.

Soil-transmitted helminths (STH) are targeted for control through mass drug-administration campaigns to prevent morbidity affecting at-risk groups in endemic regions. Although broadly successful, the use of albendazole and mebendazole achieved variable progress, with deficiencies against and a predictable low efficacy against . Novel drug combinations offer a potential solution, providing they can be delivered safely and maintain efficacy against all STH species.

Prevalence, types, patterns and risk factors associated with drugs and substances of use and abuse: A cross-sectional study of selected counties in Kenya.

Background: The increasing trend of drugs and substances abuse (DSA) by different age groups and gender in parts of Kenya is not only a socio-economic problem but a public health concern. There is a need to determine prevalence, types and patterns of DSA by age and gender in order to develop all-inclusive and long-term strategies to prevent and manage the DSA within different communities. In this study we determined the prevalence of DSA, types and patterns of drugs and substances being abused and risk factors associated with this abuse.

Correction: Prevalence, intensity and associated risk factors of soil-transmitted helminth and schistosome infections in Kenya: Impact assessment after five rounds of mass drug administration in Kenya.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.

Sensitivity Analysis of a Transmission Interruption Model for the Soil-Transmitted Helminth Infections in Kenya.

As the world rallies toward the endgame of soil-transmitted helminths (STH) elimination by the year 2030, there is a need for efficient and robust mathematical models that would enable STH programme managers to target the scarce resources and interventions, increase treatment coverage among specific sub-groups of the population, and develop reliable surveillance systems that meet sensitivity and specificity requirements for the endgame of STH elimination. However, the considerable complexities often associated with STH-transmission models underpin the need for specifying a large number of parameters and inputs, which are often available with considerable degree of uncertainty. Additionally, the model may behave counter-intuitive especially when there are non-linearities in multiple input-output relationships.

Targeted Amplicon Deep Sequencing for Monitoring Antimalarial Resistance Markers in Western Kenya.

Molecular surveillance of Plasmodium falciparum parasites is important to track emerging and new mutations and trends in established mutations and should serve as an early warning system for antimalarial resistance. Dried blood spots were obtained from a Plasmodium falciparum malaria survey in school children conducted across eight counties in western Kenya in 2019. Real-time PCR identified 500 P.

Mobile microscopy and telemedicine platform assisted by deep learning for the quantification of Trichuris trichiura infection.

Soil-transmitted helminths (STH) are the most prevalent pathogens among the group of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). The Kato-Katz technique is the diagnosis method recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) although it often presents a decreased sensitivity in low transmission settings and it is labour intensive. Visual reading of Kato-Katz preparations requires the samples to be analyzed in a short period of time since its preparation.

Malaria infection and severe disease risks in Africa.

The relationship between community prevalence of and the burden of severe, life-threatening disease remains poorly defined. To examine the three most common severe malaria phenotypes from catchment populations across East Africa, we assembled a dataset of 6506 hospital admissions for malaria in children aged 3 months to 9 years from 2006 to 2020. Admissions were paired with data from community parasite infection surveys.

Prevalence and Correlation Analysis of Soil-Transmitted Helminths Infections and Treatment Coverage for Preschool and School Aged Children in Kenya: Secondary Analysis of the National School Based Deworming Program Data.

Soil-transmitted helminths (STH) are among the most common parasitic infections globally, disproportionately affecting children. Treatment of STH in Kenya is often targeted at preschool (PSAC) and school aged (SAC) children delivered through annual mass drug administration (MDA) in primary schools. Understanding group-specific prevalence and dynamics between treatment and coverage is critical for continued treatment success.