Assessment of the Clinical, Serological and Parasitological Aspects of Onchocercal Skin Disease, 20 Years of Community Directed Treatment with Ivermectin (CDTI) in the Ruvuma, Southwestern Tanzania |Biomedgrid

Background: Onchocerciasis is a chronic disease caused by filarial worm, maintained in the communities through the black flies that breed in rapid fast flowing rivers. The disease triggers enormous sufferings and compromise community and individual socio-economic opportunities. Approximately 37 million people are afflicted by onchocerciasis and 46,000 new cases of blindness are reported each year in the hyper-mesoendemic communities. Study objective was assessing interruption of transmission after over 20 years of mass drug administration in the area.