Risk factor assessment for malaria among forest-goers in Vietnam

Individuals that work and sleep in remote forest and farm locations in the Greater Mekong Subregion continue to remain at high risk of both acquiring and transmitting malaria. These population groups largely fall outside the reach of traditional village-centered interventions, presenting operational challenges for malaria programs. In Vietnam, forest-goers are often difficult to test, treat and follow-up for malaria because they are highly mobile. If undiagnosed, forest-goers can maintain parasite reservoirs and contribute to ongoing malaria transmission.

Study 1: A case-control study was conducted in three communes in Phu Yen province, Vietnam. Participants were interviewed face-to-face using a standard questionnaire to identify malaria risk factors. Logistic regression was used to calculate odds ratios and 95% CI for risk factors after adjusting for socio-demographic characteristics.

Study 2: A cross-sectional study using novel targeted reactive investigative approaches at remote area sleeping sites was conducted in three mountainous communes in Phu Yen province, Vietnam. Index cases were defined as individuals routinely sleeping in forests or farms who had tested positive for malaria. Index cases and non-infected neighbors from forest and farm huts within 500 m of the established sleeping locations of index cases were interviewed at their remote-area sleeping sites.

Indigenous Cases & Importation
Residual Transmission
Social Science
Vulnerable Populations

Apr 2016 — Nov 2016

Vietnam

Reactive strategies