An appraisal of the neglected tropical diseases control program in Cameroon: the case of the national program against onchocerciasis

Abstract

BackgroundOnchocerciasis is a severe parasitic infestation which causes disabling skin and subcutaneous tissue changes. Current global estimates suggest that it accounts for 1135.7 disability adjusted life years (DALYs) per 100,000 population. The disease is endemic in many African countries including Cameroon, probably suggesting that the current health policies are inadequate to achieve eradication of the disease. We aimed to appraise the current Onchocerciasis control program in Cameroon in the context of existing literature.MethodsWe carried out a MEDLINE search via PubMed to source for articles on Onchocerciasis in Cameroon.ResultsOur appraisal of the literature suggests that Onchocerciasis poses a significant health and economic burden in Cameroon. A composite of factors contribute to the challenge of containing and eradicating Onchocerciasis in Cameroon and include: continuous transmission of the disease; non-compliance to mass drug administration; inability of health care providers (HCPs) to adequately diagnose the disease; limited access of most individuals in endemic zones to annual preventive chemotherapy and inadequate population education on simple and practical measures to prevent the disease. More robust population-based epidemiologic studies are needed to better quantify the current disease burden and consequently guide intervention strategies for complete disease eradication.ConclusionOnchocerciasis is still a neglected tropical disease (NTD) in Cameroon and urgently demands a need for intensification and probably modification of some strategies in the current onchocerciasis elimination program. Control of the disease will contribute to achievement of the corresponding Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) quota.

Prevalence of Onchocerciasis and Associated Factors among Adults Aged ≥ 15 Years in Semen Bench District, Bench Maji Zone, Southwest Ethiopia: Community Based Cross-Sectional Study

“…Individuals who were residing at less than 2Km distance from the river were nearly nine times more probable to develop the disease as compared to those who resided at greater than or equal to 2 Km distance from the river. This finding was in line with studies done in Cameroon [10]. This could be because those who resided at less than 2Km from the river may be more exposed to black fly bite as compared to their counterparts since black flies breed in the fresh water.…”

“…The study revealed that the overall prevalence of onchocerciasis infection in Semen Bench district after fifteen years of CDTI was 6.32%. The finding was consistent with the findings of studies conducted in southwest Ethiopia, Cameroon, Senegal, and Equatorial Guinea [10,[12][13][14][15][16]. The study was not consistent with the studies done at Jimma zone and West Welega zone which showed the prevalence of 22.5% and 74.8%, respectively [9,17].…”

“…This difference might be attributed to difference in coverage of community directed ivermectin treatment. Similarly, it was also inconsistent with the finding of a study from West Welega, 40.5%, which was done six years after CDTI; findings of studies done in Nigeria, 18%, 32.8%, and 29.2%, which were conducted fifteen years after CDTI; [13,14] and findings from studies done in Cameroon, 11.4%, 52.7%, and 43.8,47% [10,15,16]. These differences might be attributed to high therapeutic coverage of community directed treatment with ivermectin and low level of precontrol load of onchocercal volvulus microfilaria in the study area.…”

“…Studies showed that age, sex, educational status, occupation, residence distance from the river, and residence at river banks were predictors of onchocerciasis infection [9,10].…”

From river blindness control to elimination: bridge over troubled water

“…For example, by 2015, after 15 years of CDTI, onchocerciasis was reported to remain mesoendemic in the Centre and Littoral Regions of Cameroon [ 47 ]. In the North and North-West of the country, the prevalence of onchocerciasis had dramatically decreased after 17 years of CDTI but elimination has certainly not yet been reached [ 48 ]. In the DRC not even the target coverage for onchocerciasis morbidity control (of 65%) had been reached by 2012 [ 49 ], let alone the target coverage for elimination (80%).…”