In:
PLOS Global Public Health, Public Library of Science (PLoS), Vol. 2, No. 1 ( 2022-1-7), p. e0000095-
Kurzfassung:
Buruli ulcer is a neglected tropical disease caused by M . ulcerans , an environmental mycobacterium. This cutaneous infectious disease affects populations with poor access to sanitation, safe water and healthcare living in rural areas of West and Central Africa. Stagnant open bodies of surface water and slow-running streams are the only risk factor identified in Africa, and there is no human-to-human transmission. Appropriate and effective prevention strategies are required for populations living in endemic areas. Based on a multidisciplinary approach in an area in which Buruli ulcer is endemic in South Benin, we investigated the link between all human-environment interactions relating to unprotected water and behaviors associated with Buruli ulcer risk likely to affect incidence rates. We characterised the sources of water as well as water bodies and streams used by communities, by conducting a prospective case-control study directly coupled with geographic field observations, spatial analysis, and the detection of M . ulcerans in the environment. A full list of the free surface waters used for domestic activities was generated for a set of 34 villages, and several types of human behaviour associated with a higher risk of transmission were identified: (i) prolonged walking in water to reach cultivated fields, (ii) collecting water, (iii) and swimming. Combining the results of the different analyses identified the risk factor most strongly associated with Buruli ulcer was the frequency of contact with unprotected and natural water, particularly in regularly flooded or irrigated lowlands. We confirm that the use of clean water from drilled wells confers protection against Buruli ulcer. These specific and refined results provide a broader scope for the design of an appropriate preventive strategy including certain practices or infrastructures observed during our field investigations. This strategy could be improved by the addition of knowledge about irrigation practices and agricultural work in low-lying areas.
Materialart:
Online-Ressource
ISSN:
2767-3375
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pgph.0000095
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pgph.0000095.g001
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pgph.0000095.g002
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pgph.0000095.g003
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pgph.0000095.g004
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pgph.0000095.g005
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pgph.0000095.t001
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pgph.0000095.t002
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pgph.0000095.t003
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pgph.0000095.t004
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pgph.0000095.t005
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pgph.0000095.s001
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pgph.0000095.s002
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pgph.0000095.s003
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pgph.0000095.s004
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pgph.0000095.s005
Sprache:
Englisch
Verlag:
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Publikationsdatum:
2022
ZDB Id:
3101394-6
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