Rodent control to fight Lassa fever: Evaluation and lessons learned from a 4-year study in Upper Guinea.

ABSTRACT: Lassa fever is a viral haemorrhagic fever caused by an arenavirus. The disease is endemic in West African countries, including Guinea. The rodents Mastomys natalensis and Mastomys erythroleucus have been identified as Lassa virus reservoirs in Guinea. In the absence of a vaccine, rodent control and human behavioural changes are the only options to prevent Lassa fever in highly endemic areas. We performed a 4 year intervention based on chemical rodent control, utilizing anticoagulant rodenticides in 3 villages and evaluating the rodent abundance before and after treatment. Three additional villages were investigated as controls. Analyses to assess the effectiveness of the intervention, bait consumption and rodent dynamics were performed. Anthropological investigations accompanied the interv

SUBMITTER: Mari Saez A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6219765 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature