Impacts of Climate Change on Human Health and Adaptation Strategies for Nepal

Dhimal, Meghnath; Bhusal, C L

doi:10.3126/jnhrc.v7i2.3025

Cited by 11 publications

(18 citation statements)

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“…According to the experience of community people, the density of mosquitoes starts to rise in the pre-monsoon and they disappear with the onset of winter. The perception of people on mosquitoes occurrence in the present study are consistent with results of previous studies [ 36 , 57 , 58 ].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Species composition, seasonal occurrence, habitat preference and altitudinal distribution of malaria and other disease vectors in eastern Nepal

2014

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BackgroundIt is increasingly recognized that climate change can alter the geographical distribution of vector-borne diseases (VBDs) with shifts of disease vectors to higher altitudes and latitudes. In particular, an increasing risk of malaria and dengue fever epidemics in tropical highlands and temperate regions has been predicted in different climate change scenarios. The aim of this paper is to expand the current knowledge on the seasonal occurrence and altitudinal distribution of malaria and other disease vectors in eastern Nepal.MethodsAdult mosquitoes resting indoors and outdoors were collected using CDC light trap and aspirators with the support of flash light. Mosquito larvae were collected using locally constructed dippers. We assessed the local residents’ perceptions of the distribution and occurrence of mosquitoes using key informant interview techniques. Generalized linear models were fitted to assess the effect of season, resting site and topography on the abundance of malaria vectors.ResultsThe known malaria vectors in Nepal, Anopheles fluviatilis, Anopheles annularis and Anopheles maculatus complex members were recorded from 70 to 1,820 m above sea level (asl). The vectors of chikungunya and dengue virus, Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus, the vector of lymphatic filariasis, Culex quinquefasciatus, and that of Japanese encephalitis, Culex tritaeniorhynchus, were found from 70 to 2,000 m asl in eastern Nepal. Larvae of Anopheles, Culex and Aedes species were recorded up to 2,310 m asl. Only season had a significant effect on the abundance of An. fluviatilis, season and resting site on the abundance of An. maculatus complex members, and season, resting site and topography on the abundance of An. annularis. The perceptions of people on mosquito occurrence are consistent with entomological findings.ConclusionsThis study provides the first vertical distribution records of vector mosquitoes in eastern Nepal and suggests that the vectors of malaria and other diseases have already established populations in the highlands due to climatic and other environmental changes. As VBD control programmes have not been focused on the highlands of Nepal, these findings call for actions to start monitoring, surveillance and research on VBDs in these previously disease-free, densely populated and economically important regions.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Species composition, seasonal occurrence, habitat preference and altitudinal distribution of malaria and other disease vectors in eastern Nepal

2014

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“…As many breeding places such as discarded tyres and stagnant water are common in the lowlands where mosquitoes have been a nuisance for ages, lowland people might have ignored preventive practices. In contrast, mosquito nuisance only recently appeared in many highland areas of Nepal [54] , and people there show a greater interest in controlling mosquito breeding places to avoid bites. This can also be observed in a higher correlation of knowledge and practice in the highlands ( Table 7 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Knowledge, Attitude and Practice Regarding Dengue Fever among the Healthy Population of Highland and Lowland Communities in Central Nepal

et al. 2014

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BackgroundDengue fever (DF) is the most rapidly spreading mosquito-borne viral disease in the world. In this decade it has expanded to new countries and from urban to rural areas. Nepal was regarded DF free until 2004. Since then dengue virus (DENV) has rapidly expanded its range even in mountain regions of Nepal, and major outbreaks occurred in 2006 and 2010. However, no data on the local knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) of DF in Nepal exist although such information is required for prevention and control measures.MethodsWe conducted a community based cross-sectional survey in five districts of central Nepal between September 2011 and February 2012. We collected information on the socio-demographic characteristics of the participants and their knowledge, attitude and practice regarding DF using a structured questionnaire. We then statistically compared highland and lowland communities to identify possible causes of observed differences.Principal FindingsOut of 589 individuals interviewed, 77% had heard of DF. Only 12% of the sample had good knowledge of DF. Those living in the lowlands were five times more likely to possess good knowledge than highlanders (P<0.001). Despite low knowledge levels, 83% of the people had good attitude and 37% reported good practice. We found a significantly positive correlation among knowledge, attitude and practice (P<0.001). Among the socio-demographic variables, the education level of the participants was an independent predictor of practice level (P<0.05), and education level and interaction between the sex and age group of the participants were independent predictors of attitude level (P<0.05).ConclusionDespite the rapid expansion of DENV in Nepal, the knowledge of people about DF was very low. Therefore, massive awareness programmes are urgently required to protect the health of people from DF and to limit its further spread in this country.

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“…Out of 37 excluded articles, 11 studies, including May Measurement Month Campaigns, applied convenient or other nonprobability sampling methods to select the participants [ 22 , 36 – 44 ]. In addition, we identified seven reports published on government and international agency websites [ 17 – 20 , 45 – 47 ]. Three of the reports had publicly available data [ 18 , 45 , 47 ], which we utilized to generate and extract the required information for this study.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Huang et al [ 16 ]conducted a meta-analysis to pool the prevalence of hypertension in Nepal in 2018. Their study, however, failed to accommodate the findings of the STEPS surveys of 2003, 2005, 2007, and 2019 [ 17 – 20 ] and limited the analysis to estimating the prevalence of hypertension. Additionally, no studies have attempted to systematically review the literature on the awareness, treatment, and control of hypertension in Nepal.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Trends in the Prevalence, Awareness, Treatment, and Control of Hypertension in Nepal between 2000 and 2025: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Dhungana

Pandey

Shrestha

2021

International Journal of Hypertension

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Background. Understanding the burden and trend of hypertension and the associated care cascade can provide direction to the development of interventions preventing and controlling hypertension. This study aimed to assess prevalence and trends of hypertension and its awareness, treatment, and control in Nepal. Methods. We systematically searched CINAHL, Embase, ProQuest, PubMed, Web of Science, WorldCat, and government and health agency-owned websites to identify studies reporting prevalence of hypertension, awareness, treatment, and control in Nepal between 2000 and 2020. We applied the random-effects model to compute the pooled prevalence in the overall population and among subgroups in each 5-year interval period between 2000 and 2020. We used linear meta-regression analysis to predict hypertension from 2000 to 2025. Results. We identified 23 studies having a total of 84,006 participants. The pooled prevalence of hypertension, awareness, treatment, and control for 2016–2020 was 32% (95% CI: 23–40%), 50% (95% CI: 30–69%), 27% (95% CI: 19–34%), and 38% (95% CI: 28–48%), respectively. The prevalence of hypertension varied by age, gender, education, and geographical area. Hypertension increased by 6 percentage points (pp), awareness increased by 12 pp, treatment increased by 11 pp, and control increased by 3 pp over the 20 years studied. Since 2000, the rate of increment of hypertension has been 3.5 pp per decade, where 44.7% of men are expected to suffer from hypertension by 2025. Conclusion. The markedly increased prevalence of hypertension and relatively poor progress in hypertension awareness, treatment, and control in Nepal suggest that there is a need for hypertension preventive approaches as well as strategies to optimize hypertension care cascade.

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Impacts of Climate Change on Human Health and Adaptation Strategies for Nepal

Abstract: DOI: 10.3126/jnhrc.v7i2.3025 Journal of Nepal Health Research Council Vol.7(2) Apr 2009 140-141

Cited by 11 publications

References 1 publication

Species composition, seasonal occurrence, habitat preference and altitudinal distribution of malaria and other disease vectors in eastern Nepal

Species composition, seasonal occurrence, habitat preference and altitudinal distribution of malaria and other disease vectors in eastern Nepal

Knowledge, Attitude and Practice Regarding Dengue Fever among the Healthy Population of Highland and Lowland Communities in Central Nepal

Trends in the Prevalence, Awareness, Treatment, and Control of Hypertension in Nepal between 2000 and 2025: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

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