Ownership, Perception, and Usage of Long-Lasting Insecticide-Treated Net (LLIN) During Dry Season Among Residents of Kola Ward in Guyuk L.G.A of Adamawa State
Babylon Philemon, Atimi Atinga, Emmanuel C.Obiano, Tirah Galaya, Zenoh A.Danjuma
Int. J. Bio. Lab. Sci 2019 1&2:22-27 【Abstract】 【PDF】
Abstract
Background: Malaria is caused by one of four species of Plasmodium parasites that are transmitted by various species of mosquitoes in the genus Anopheles. One of the major ways to control malaria is through the use of long-lasting insecticide-treated net (LLIN) that prevents these mosquitoes from feeding on people. LLIN use has been shown to reduce illness and death drastically from malaria across a range of transmission environments. Methods: This research study was aimed to ascertain the level of ownership, perception and usage of long lasting insecticide-treated nets (LLIN) during dry season in the month of December by the residents of Kola Ward in Guyuk L.G.A of Adamawa State. A structured questionnaire was administered to two hundred and thirty (230) willingly volunteer participants residing within the study area. Result: The result of this study revealed that out of the total (230) of the participants enrolled in this study 140 (60.87%) of them owned LLIN while 90 (39.13%) do not; 196 (85.22%) were of the view that using LLIN goes a long way in preventing malaria infection while 34 (14.78%) were of the view that using it or not does not matter during dry season; 86 (37.39%) were using LLIN while 144 (62.61%) were not using it during the period; 87 (60.44%) said there was no mosquito bite during that period that is why they are not using it, 30 (20.14%) said there is discomfort while sleeping inside LLIN, 20 (13.89%) said they have difficulty hanging it and 7 (4.86%) said they were avoiding using it because it has adverse effects. However, the result of chi-square test revealed that there was a significant difference (P<0.05) in all the responses made by the participants. Conclusion & Recommendation: The study concludes that though the level of ownership of LLIN is high in the study area, usage does not meet up to the standard coverage rate. It is recommended that more effort need to be put in place by the government, NGOs, concern individuals and health workers in the state to increase the level of awareness on the need to use LLIN even during dry season.
Key words: Long Lasting Insecticide-treated nets (LLIN), Malaria and Participants
