Spatial distribution, prevalence and potential risk factors of Tungiasis in Vihiga County, Kenya

Abstract

BackgroundTungiasis is a parasitic disease caused by the sand flea Tunga penetrans also known as jigger flea. Communities living in precarious conditions in tropical and sub tropical countries bear the brunt of the infection. The main objective of this study was to determine the burden of Tungiasis in Vihiga County in Kenya.MethodsThis was a cross-sectional study conducted in 21 villages in 3 Sub-locations in Vihiga County, western Kenya. A total of 437 participants, 5 years old and above were clinically examined for the presence of tungiasis after consenting to take part in the study. Diagnosis was made following standard methods. A semi- structured questionnaire was administered to assess socio-demographic factors, housing, presence and ownership of animals, knowledge and practice related to tungiasis. Data were analyzed using bivariate and multivariate regression analysis. GIS was used to map the geographic distribution of tungiasis in the area.ResultsThe overall prevalence was found to be (21.5%; 95% CI: 17.7–25.3%). The cases were analysed and visualized in a map form. Multivariate analysis suggested that the occurrence of tungiasis was associated with variables that indicated low economic status (like a monthly income of Ksh ≤ 1000 (adjusted odds ratio 27.85; 95% CI: 4.13–187.59), earthen floor (0.36; 0.13–1.024) and lack of toilet facilities (4.27; 0.82–22.34), age of participant ≤14 (27.414; 10.02–74.99), no regular use of closed footwear (1.98; 0.987–3.97) and common resting place inside the house (1.93; 0.96–3.89).ConclusionsTungiasis is an important health problem in Vihiga County occasioned by the low economic status of the people affected. Factors that point to poverty contribute to the occurrence of tungiasis. These findings suggest a need to design control strategies for tungiasis that are cost effective and easily accessible.

Environmental and Household-Based Spatial Risks for Tungiasis in an Endemic Area of Coastal Kenya

“…Several environmental, demographic, and behavioral factors have been associated with disease incidence. These include age groups, specifically children and the elderly [7][8][9][10][11]; low socioeconomic status associated with inadequate housing [7,9,[11][12][13][14][15][16]; low affordability, access to, and knowledge of hygiene and health behaviors [11,12,14,15]; and the lack of clean water and sanitation at the household level [7,16]. Relevant to the zoonotic aspects of tungiasis, the presence of animals of various species in and around household compounds was also reported to raise the risk of human tungiasis [9,[11][12][13][14]17].…”

Mapping the Geographic Distribution of Tungiasis in Sub-Saharan Africa

“…Since the first description of Tungiasis in 1526 among members of Columbus’ crew of the Santa Maria [ 2 ] to the subsequent expansion of the parasitosis across Africa in the 19th century, the disease has become unfortunately commonplace among underprivileged communities facing extreme poverty and underdevelopment. This study is the first to examine tungiasis at a continental scale and contributes to the recent literature that examined the disease from a geographic perspective [ 15 , 51 ]. An ecological niche modeling (ENM) approach was applied to understand better the relationship between the distribution of occurrence locations and environmental covariates to develop a broad-scale predictive map of suitability across SSA.…”

“…These regional designations will serve as the basis for reporting the total population living in environmentally suitable areas. Tungiasis occurrences records (n = 86) (please see Supplementary Materials : Table S2 ) were assembled through a search of the literature from 1324–2019 [ 23 , 24 , 25 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 57 , 58 , 59 , 60 , 61 , 62 , 63 , 64 , 65 , 66 , 67 , 68 , 69 , 70 , 71 , 72 , 73 , 74 , 75 , 76 , 77 , 78 , 79 , 80 , 81 , 82 , 83 , 84 , …”

“…Based on this information, edaphic variables: sand, clay, soil Ph, and silt content (5-cm depth, g/100 (w%)) were obtained at a 1-kilometer resolution from the International Soil Reference and Information Centre (ISRIC) ( ) at a 0–5-cm depth [ 103 ]. Local-level studies have documented an association between tungiasis and sandy, clay soils in Trinidad and Tobago [ 5 ], Brazil [ 104 ], and Kenya [ 51 ].…”

Severity of Infestation Levels of Tunga Penetrans in Central, Kenya: A Bayesian Cumulative Logit Model

“…However, ectopic sites such as the hands, elbows, thighs, and gluteal region may also be infected (Heukelbach et al, 2002). Whereas earlier studies conducted in the area were more on the social detail (Mwangi et al, 2015;Nyangacha et al, 2019;Nsanzimana et al, 2019;Keiyoro et al, 2016), a mathematical perspective was therefore required to infuse some modelling facet. This would enable finding a better solution to the menace by first establishing the key factors that affect the transmission of Tunga Penetrans.…”