Analysis of children's perception of triatomine vectors of chagas disease through drawings: opportunities for targeted health education.

Violetta Yevstigneyeva,Eric Dumonteil,Javier Camara-Mejia

doi:10.1371/journal.pntd.0003217

Violetta Yevstigneyeva, Eric Dumonteil + Show 1 more

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https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0003217

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Abstract

BackgroundChagas disease is a tropical parasitic disease affecting about 10 million people, mostly in the Americas, and transmitted mainly by triatomine bugs. Insect vector control with indoor residual insecticides and the promotion of housing improvement is the main control intervention. The success of such interventions relies on their acceptance and appropriation by communities, which depends on their knowledge and perceptions of both the disease and the vector. In this study, we investigated school-aged children's knowledge and perception on triatomine vectors and Chagas disease to further understand how communities view this vector and the disease in Yucatan, Mexico.Methodology/Principal findingsWe performed an analysis of children's drawings on the theme of triatomines and their house in several rural villages, to explore in an open-ended manner their views, understanding and misconceptions. A total of 261 drawings were collected from children ages 6–12 from four villages. We found that children are very familiar with triatomine vectors, and know very well many aspects of their biology and ecology, and in particular their blood-feeding habits. On the other hand, their drawings suggest that the role of triatomines as vectors of a chronic and severe cardiac disease is less understood, and the main perceived health threat appears limited to the bite itself, as previously observed in adults.Conclusions/SignificanceThese results have important implications for the specific design of future education materials and campaigns, and for the promotion of the inclusion of children in raising Chagas disease awareness in these endemic communities.

Highlights

Chagas disease is a parasitic disease representing a major public health problem in Latin America, with about 10 million infected people [1,2,3]
The disease is caused by the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, which is transmitted mainly by the feces of hematophagous bugs of the triatomine family, secondary transmission mechanisms are increasingly contributing to the epidemiology of the disease [5], and it is becoming more urbanized [6,7,8,9]
In a previous study in rural Mayan communities of Yucatan, Mexico, we found that communities had a good knowledge of triatomines and their habits, but most inhabitants had a limited understanding of the transmission mechanisms and clinical manifestations of Chagas disease [15]

Summary

Introduction

Chagas disease is a parasitic disease representing a major public health problem in Latin America, with about 10 million infected people [1,2,3]. In a previous study in rural Mayan communities of Yucatan, Mexico, we found that communities had a good knowledge of triatomines and their habits, but most inhabitants had a limited understanding of the transmission mechanisms and clinical manifestations of Chagas disease [15] They do not clearly perceive the disease (and its vector) as a serious health threat, in spite of a significant level of house. Insect vector control with indoor residual insecticides and the promotion of housing improvement is the main control intervention The success of such interventions relies on their acceptance and appropriation by communities, which depends on their knowledge and perceptions of both the disease and the vector. We investigated school-aged children’s knowledge and perception on triatomine vectors and Chagas disease to further understand how communities view this vector and the disease in Yucatan, Mexico

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