ArticleMalaria journal2016
Bed net use among school-aged children after a universal bed net campaign in Malawi.
Article in Malaria journal, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 48 papers.
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Who cites it
48 citing papers in PubMed, 75 citations in OpenAlex.
- Trial
- Implementation of a malaria prevention education intervention in Southern Ethiopia: a qualitative evaluation.BMC public health · 2022Trial
- Permethrin-treated baby wraps for the prevention of malaria: results of a randomized controlled pilot study in rural Uganda.Malaria journal · 2022Trial
- Trial
- School-based screening and treatment may reduce P. falciparum transmission.Scientific reports · 2021Trial
- Impact of school-based malaria case management on school attendance, health and education outcomes: a cluster randomised trial in southern Malawi.BMJ global health · 2020Trial
- The gap between having and using: socioeconomic inequalities in long-lasting insecticidal net coverage among children and adolescents in rural Guinea.Tropical medicine and health · 2026Article
- Article
- Couple concordance related to ITN use in Malawi.Malaria journal · 2026Article
- Disparities in long-lasting insecticidal bed net usage and malaria burden 2 years after a mass distribution campaign in central Côte d'Ivoire: A cross-sectional survey prior to a cluster randomised trial.PLOS global public health · 2026Article
- Article
- Implementation of the intermittent preventive treatment of malaria in school-aged children (IPTsc) in moderate and high endemic areas in Tanzania: a policy brief.EClinicalMedicine · 2025Review
- "After a long day of play, I get tired and forget to unfurl my bed net": a qualitative study exploring factors affecting insecticide-treated bed net use among school-aged children in eastern Uganda.Malaria journal · 2025Article
- Epidemiology of Plasmodium spp. Detection Among Acute Febrile Illness Patients in Two Regions of Nigeria.Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America · 2025Article
- Malaria Knowledge and Associated Factors Towards Mosquito Net Use among School Children in Muheza District, Tanzania.The East African health research journal · 2025Article
- Late morning biting behaviour of Anopheles funestus is a risk factor for transmission in schools in Siaya, western Kenya.Malaria journal · 2023Article
- Barriers to accessing malaria treatment amongst school-age children in rural Malawi.Malaria journal · 2023Article
- Genotyping of Anopheles mosquito blood meals reveals nonrandom human host selection: implications for human-to-mosquito Plasmodium falciparum transmission.Malaria journal · 2023Article
- Article
- An evaluation of LLIN ownership, access, and use during the Magude project in southern Mozambique.PloS one · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
12 authors at 4 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundRecent data from Malawi suggest that school-aged children (SAC), aged 5-15 years, have the highest prevalence of Plasmodium falciparum infection among all age groups. They are the least likely group to utilize insecticide-treated nets (ITNs), the most commonly available intervention to prevent malaria in Africa. This study examined the effects of a universal ITN distribution campaign, and their durability over time in SAC in Malawi. This study identified factors that influence net usage among SAC and how these factors changed over time.
methodsCross-sectional surveys using cluster random sampling were conducted at the end of each rainy and dry season in southern Malawi from 2012 to 2014; six surveys were done in total. Mass net distribution occurred between the first and second surveys. Data were collected on household and individual net usage as well as demographic information. Statistical analyses used generalized linear mixed models to account for clustering at the household and neighbourhood level.
resultsThere were 7347 observations from SAC and 14,785 from young children and adults. SAC used nets significantly less frequently than the rest of the population (odds ratio (OR) from 0.14 to 0.38). The most important predictors of net usage among SAC were a lower ratio of people to nets in a household and higher proportion of nets that were hanging at the time of survey. Older SAC (11-15 years) were significantly less likely to use nets than younger SAC (5-10 years) [OR = 0.24 (95 % CI: 0.21, 0.28)]. The universal bed net campaign led to a statistically significant population-wide increase in net use, however net use returned to near baseline within 3 years.
conclusionsThis study suggests that a single universal net distribution campaign, in combination with routine distribution through health clinics is not sufficient to cause a sustained increase in net usage among SAC. Novel approaches to ITN distribution, such as school-based distribution, may be needed to address the high prevalence of infection in SAC.
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