Knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding malaria control among communities living in the south Cameroon forest region

Roland Bamou; Timoléon Tchuinkam; Edmond Kopya; Parfait Awono-Ambene; Flobert Njiokou; Joseph Mwangangi; Christophe Antonio-Nkondjio

doi:10.1016/j.ijregi.2022.11.003

Knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding malaria control among communities living in the south Cameroon forest region

IJID Reg. 2022 Nov 9:5:169-176. doi: 10.1016/j.ijregi.2022.11.003. eCollection 2022 Dec.

Authors

Roland Bamou^{1

2}, Timoléon Tchuinkam¹, Edmond Kopya^{2

3}, Parfait Awono-Ambene², Flobert Njiokou³, Joseph Mwangangi^{4

5}, Christophe Antonio-Nkondjio^{2

6}

Affiliations

¹ Vector Borne Diseases Laboratory of the Applied Biology and Ecology Research Unit (VBID-URBEA), Department of Animal Biology, Faculty of Science of the University of Dschang.
² Organisation de Coordination pour la Lutte Contre les Endémies en Afrique Centrale (OCEAC), Yaounde, Cameroon.
³ Laboratory of Parasitology and Ecology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Yaoundé, Yaoundé, Cameroon.
⁴ Center for Geographic Medicine Research, Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI), Kilifi, Kenya.
⁵ Centre for Vector Disease Control, Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI), Kwale, Kenya.
⁶ Vector Biology, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Pembroke Place, Liverpool L3 5QA, UK.

Abstract

Objective: This study assessed knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) regarding malaria among communities living in the equatorial forest region of south Cameroon.

Methods: The study was conducted in Olama and Nyabessan. Interviews were undertaken using a semi-structured questionnaire for data collection on KAP, while malaria rapid diagnostic testing, using SD BIOLINE kits, was employed for malaria parasite detection.

Results: In total, 186 heads of households (HoH), comprising 105 (56.45%) males and 81 (43.45%) females, were interviewed. The majority of HoH demonstrated good knowledge of malaria (86.56%; n = 161) and control measures, with a high proportion of long-lasting insecticidal net (LLIN) ownership (96.8%; n = 180). More than two-thirds (81.1%; n = 151) of households owned at least one LLIN for two people. The majority of HoH (85.40%) declared visiting hospitals or clinics in cases of suspected malaria. Malaria parasite prevalence was high in the two study sites (63.9% in Nyabessan and 48.65% in Olama), and varied according to age, house type, and sleeping time.

Conclusion: The study indicated that despite good knowledge of malaria, high possession and utilization of control measures by population, transmission of malaria still persist in the area. The study stress the need for implementing additional control measures to improve the fight against malaria in the area.

Keywords: Cameroon; HoH, head of household; IRS, indoor residual spraying; KAP; KAP, knowledge, attitude, and practice; LLIN, long-lasting insecticidal net; MoH, Ministry of Health. PBO, piperonyl butoxide; NMCP, National Malaria Control Program; WHO, World Health Organization; forested area; mRDT, malaria rapid diagnostic test; malaria determinants; malaria prevalence.