1.A marked decline in the incidence of malaria in a remote region of Malaita, Solomon Islands, 2008 to 2013
Oloifana-Polosovai Hellen ; Gwala John ; Harrington Humpress ; Massey Peter D ; Ribeyro Elmer ; Flores Angelica ; Speare Christopher ; McBride Edwin ; MacLaren David ; Speare Rick
Western Pacific Surveillance and Response 2014;5(3):30-39
Setting:Atoifi Adventist Hospital (AAH), Solomon Islands, the only hospital in the East Kwaio region.
Objective:To use routine surveillance data to assess the trends in malaria from 2008 to 2013.
Design:Descriptive study of records from (1) AAH laboratory malaria records; (2) admissions to AAH for malaria; and (3) malaria treatments from outpatient records.
Results:AAH examined 35 608 blood films and diagnosed malaria in 4443 samples comprised of 2667
2.Prevalence of soil-transmitted helminths in remote villages in East Kwaio, Solomon Islands
Harrington Humpress ; Bradbury Richard ; Taeka James ; Asugeni James ; Asugeni Vunivesi ; Igeni Tony ; Gwala John ; Newton Lawrence ; Fa Chillion Evan ; Kilivisi Fawcett Laurence ; Esau Dorothy ; Flores Angelica ; Ribeyro Elmer ; Liku Daisy ; Muse Alwin ; Asugeni Lyndel ; Talana Jeptha ; Shield Jennifer ; MacLaren David J ; Massey Peter D ; Muller Reinhold ; Speare Rick
Western Pacific Surveillance and Response 2015;6(3):51-58
Objective:Although soil-transmitted helminths (STH) are endemic in Solomon Islands, there are few recent reports on their prevalence. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of STH in residents of remote communities in Solomon Islands.Methods:A cross-sectional convenience-sampled survey of residents of four adjacent villages in Malaita, Solomon Islands was performed in Atoifi and Na’au in April 2011 and in Abitona and Sifilo in April 2012. All residents older than one year were invited to participate, which involved providing a single sample of faeces examined using a modified Kato-Katz technique and completing a questionnaire that asked demographic and STH-related behaviour questions.Results:The overall participation rate was 52.8%, with 402 participants comprising 49.8% males. Hookworm was the predominant STH with only a single case of trichuriasis found in Atoifi. The total prevalence of hookworm was 22.6% (95% confidence interval: 18.6–27.1); the prevalence of hookworm in Abitona, Na’au and Sifilo was 20.0%, 29.9% and 27.4%, respectively, whereas in Atoifi it was 2.3% (