Deworming

Abstract: This brief summarizes worms: identifying impacts on education and health in the presence of treatment externalities in Kenya for the period 1998-99. Intestinal helminthes includes hookworm, roundworm, whipworm, and schistoso-miasis-infect more than one-quarter of the world's population. Studies in which medical treatment is randomized at the individual level potentially doubly underestimate the benefits of treatment, missing externality benefits to the comparison group from reduced disease transmission, and therefore also underestimating benefits for the treatment group. The author evaluate a Kenyan project in which school-based mass treatment with deworming drugs was randomly phased into schools, rather than to individuals, allowing estimation of overall program effects. The program reduced school absenteeism in treatment schools by one-quarter, and was far cheaper than alternative ways of boosting school participation. Deworming substantially improved health and school participation among untreated children in both treatment schools and neighboring schools and these externalities are large enough to justify fully subsidizing treatment.

Abstract: A study was conducted at General Hospital Ijebu Igbo antenatal section to investigate the prevalence of intestinal parasitic infection and anemia in pregnant women. A questionnaire was administered to 42 pregnant women who attended the antenatal section of the clinic during the study period. Out of these 42 pregnant women, 18 (42.9%) provided both fecal and blood samples for parasitological and hematological analysis. 50% of the respondents fall within 16-25years age group, while those within 36-45years have the lowest percentage (22.2%). 50% have the knowledge of the helminth infection, out of the 9(50%) that have the knowledge, only 7(77.8%) have the knowledge of how the infection is being transmitted. Of 18 respondents, 13(72%) have the knowledge of anemia, and 5(28%) of them had no prior knowledge of it. The parasitological analysis revealed three intestinal parasite which are Ascaris lumbricoides (22.2%), Enterobius vermicularis (11.11%) and Entamoeba histolytica (5.56%). There were no reported cases of severe anaemic condition in this hospital based study. This suggests that the awareness level of anemia and parasitic infection is moderately high. Therefore, screening for intestinal parasites and deworming of infected pregnant women should be included in antenatal care.

Abstract: Intestinal helminths - including hookworm roundworm schistosomiasis and whipworm - infect more than one-quarter of the worlds population. A randomized evaluation of a project in Kenya suggests that school-based mass treatment with deworming drugs reduced school absenteeism in treatment schools by one quarter gains are especially large among the youngest children. Deworming is found to be cheaper than alternative ways of boosting school participation. By reducing disease transmission deworming creates substantial externality health and school participation benefits among untreated children in the treatment schools and among children in neighboring schools. These externalities are large enough to justify fully subsidizing treatment. We do not find evidence that deworming improves academic test scores. Existing experimental studies in which treatment is randomized among individuals in the same school find small and insignificant deworming treatment effects on education; however these studies underestimate true treatment effects if deworming creates positive externalities for the control group and reduces treatment group attrition. (authors)