Impact of insecticide treated nets on malaria incidence – the case of north dayi district

Abstract

One disease that has ravaged the tropical environment for centuries and claimed many lives is malaria. Malaria has been with man since prehistoric times (WHO, 2004). It is the main cause of morbidity and mortality in the North Dayi district of Ghana. The study relied only on existing data on morbidity for malaria from the district health directorate information unit. Data available from the Kpando DHMT had shown that malaria consistently had topped all diseases from 2000 to date. The study was aimed at assessing the impact of the distribution of ITNs in the North Dayi district. Research objectives were to analyze incidence among children under-five and women in reproductive age. It also aimed to assess the relationship between ITNs and malaria morbidity. The result from the study indicated that despite the ITN distribution, malaria cases reported at the various facilities increased. This finding did not conform to other studies which suggested that ITNs could reduce the incidence of malaria within the first six months. This is a worrying outcome and could be as a result of the relaxation in education of the other preventive measures that were in place prior to the introduction of the ITNs. To reverse this worrying situation, it is recommended that sensitization of the other preventive measures should be employed to prevent Anopheles mosquitoes from biting in the night. It was also evident that the quantity of ITNs distributed was not adequate and must be deployed on a mass scale.