PreprintArticleVersion 1Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed
Community Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices Regarding Onchocerciasis in Rural Villages With a High Epilepsy Prevalence in Mahenge, Tanzania: A Qualitative Study
Version 1
: Received: 22 July 2022 / Approved: 25 July 2022 / Online: 25 July 2022 (09:27:22 CEST)
How to cite:
Bhwana, D.K.; Massawe, I.S.; Mushi, A.K.; Mashili, P.; Amaral, L.; Makunde, W.; Mmbando, B.P.; Colebunders, R. Community Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices Regarding Onchocerciasis in Rural Villages With a High Epilepsy Prevalence in Mahenge, Tanzania: A Qualitative Study. Preprints2022, 2022070366. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202207.0366.v1
Bhwana, D.K.; Massawe, I.S.; Mushi, A.K.; Mashili, P.; Amaral, L.; Makunde, W.; Mmbando, B.P.; Colebunders, R. Community Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices Regarding Onchocerciasis in Rural Villages With a High Epilepsy Prevalence in Mahenge, Tanzania: A Qualitative Study. Preprints 2022, 2022070366. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202207.0366.v1
Bhwana, D.K.; Massawe, I.S.; Mushi, A.K.; Mashili, P.; Amaral, L.; Makunde, W.; Mmbando, B.P.; Colebunders, R. Community Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices Regarding Onchocerciasis in Rural Villages With a High Epilepsy Prevalence in Mahenge, Tanzania: A Qualitative Study. Preprints2022, 2022070366. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202207.0366.v1
APA Style
Bhwana, D.K., Massawe, I.S., Mushi, A.K., Mashili, P., Amaral, L., Makunde, W., Mmbando, B.P., & Colebunders, R. (2022). Community Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices Regarding Onchocerciasis in Rural Villages With a High Epilepsy Prevalence in Mahenge, Tanzania: A Qualitative Study. Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202207.0366.v1
Chicago/Turabian Style
Bhwana, D.K., Bruno P. Mmbando and Robert Colebunders. 2022 "Community Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices Regarding Onchocerciasis in Rural Villages With a High Epilepsy Prevalence in Mahenge, Tanzania: A Qualitative Study" Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202207.0366.v1
Abstract
Despite of over 20 years of community directed treatment with ivermectin (CDTI), a high prevalence of onchocerciasis and onchocerciasis-associated epilepsy were observed in rural villages in Mahenge, Tanzania. Therefore, we assessed the knowledge, attitude and practice about onchocerciasis in four rural villages in the Mahenge area. This was a qualitative study conducted between June and July 2019. Eleven focus group discussions were organized with persons with epilepsy and their caretakers, community resource persons, and community drug distributors (CDDs), and two in-depth interviews with district programme coordinators of neglected tropical diseases (NTD). Most participants were aware about symptoms of onchocerciasis using local terminologies such as “ukurutu/rough dry skin” and “kuwashwa/itching”. A small proportion of people did not take ivermectin during CDTI for fear of adverse reactions such as itching and swelling. Some men believed that ivermectin may decrease libido. Challenges for high CDTI coverage included, long walking distance by CDDs to deliver drugs to households, persons being away for farming, low awareness of the disease and limited supervision by the NTD coordinators. In conclusion, ivermectin uptake in Mahenge should be optimised by continuous advocacy about the importance of taking ivermectin to prevent onchocerciasis-associated morbidity and by improving supervision during CDTI.
Keywords
onchocerciasis; community directed treatment with ivermectin; elimination; epilepsy; focus group discussions; misconceptions
Subject
Medicine and Pharmacology, Tropical Medicine
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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