Objective: To evaluate the effect of an integrated control strategy and to quantify the spatial-temporal variation of infected snails in the bottomland areas after the strategy was implemented.
Methods: Based on the geographic database of infected snail distribution at the village level during 2004 - 2010 in Anxiang county, Hunan province, spatial autocorrelation analysis and spatial scan statistics were applied to analyze the spatial-temporal characteristics on the distribution of infected snails.
Results: The number of embankments with infected snails in Anxiang county decreased from 23 in 2004 to 10 in 2010, while the rate of frame with infected snail in embankments decreased from 4.32‰ in 2004 to 0.12‰ in 2010. The spatial distribution of infected snails was nonrandom, only in 2004 and 2005 with Moran's I = 0.21 (P < 0.10) and Moran's I = 0.13 (P < 0.10) respectively. Data from the local spatial auto-correlation analysis showed that the number of villages with H-H types of auto-correlation model had been gradually decreasing. The results of SaTScan statistics appeared the same as from the local spatial auto-correlation analysis, showing that the number of areas with increased risk was decreasing.
Conclusion: The comprehensive measures with emphasis on infectious source control seemed effective for schistosomiasis control program. The current distribution characteristics provided us with evidence that the resource assignment could be more reasonably implemented so as to control schistosomiasis in a more effective way.