Reassessment of Onchocerciasis prevalence in Etteh, Nigeria, after a decade of mass mectizan chemotherapeutic intervention: Preliminary report

Abstract

Areassessment of the prevalence of onchocerciasiswas carried out in Etteh community in Igbo-Eze North Local Government Area of Enugu state, Nigeria. The community has been known to be highly endemic for onchocerciasis. The assessment of endemicity was based on Rapid Assessment Method (RAM), which involved the use of two onchocercal indices namely the presence of palpable nodules and depigmentation (Leopard skin). Out o the 716 individuals examined consisting of 327 males and 389 females, the overal prevalence of palpable onchocercal nodules was 51.4%. The females had insignificanty (P>0.05) higher rate of onchocercomata (51.9%) than males (44.0%). The anatomical distribution of nodules in descending order of occurrence was pelvic regon (26.3%), head and neck regon (20.6%), thorax and lumbar (15.7%), upper limbs (14.5%), lower limbs (12.4%) and others (abdomen and shoulders, 5.9%). It is obvious that in spite of the decade-longannual free distribution of Mectizan in the area, onchocerciasis prevalence is still high.

Keywords: Onchocerciasis, Mectizan, Reassessment, Nodules, Chemotherapy