The spatial-temporal clustering of Plasmodium falciparum infection over eleven years in Gezira State, The Sudan.

Background: Malaria infection and disease exhibit microgeographic heterogeneity which if predictable could have implications for designing small-area intervention. Here, the space-time clustering of Plasmodium falciparum infections using data from repeat cross-sectional surveys in Gezira State, a low transmission area in northern Sudan, is investigated.

Methods: Data from cross-sectional surveys undertaken in January each year from 1999-2009 in 88 villages in the Gezira state were assembled.