Abstract
BackgroundThe use of mosquito coils has gained widespread patronage in malaria-endemic countries, even though it is not a recommended preventive measure for avoiding mosquitoes. Mosquito coils contain insecticides, which are expected to vaporize slowly once the coil is lit, to provide protection against the mosquito. The mosquito coil base material contains a variety of compounds capable of burning slowly to gradually release the insecticide. The mosquito coil smoke, however, is potentially a source of indoor air pollution with implications for acute respiratory infections (ARI) and other illnesses. The present study investigated the application of mosquito coils and associated self-reported health issues in Ghana.MethodsA cross-sectional study was undertaken in which questionnaires were randomly administered to 480 households across four districts in Ghana. Respondents who exclusively applied mosquito coils were grouped as test cohort, while those who did not apply any mosquito repellency method constituted a control cohort.ResultsThe test group that applied mosquito coils reported malaria incidence rate of 86.3 %. The control group that did not apply any mosquito repellency method reported an incidence rate of malaria at 72.4 %. Chi square analysis suggested that the observed difference was statistically significant (x2 = 4.25; p = 0.04). The number of respondents who reported symptoms of cough from mosquito coil application (52.6 % incidence rate) was marginally greater than their counterparts who did not apply coils (46.1 % incidence rate). It was also found that respondents with shortage of breath, which was used as a proxy for ARI, were more likely to have applied mosquito coil.ConclusionsThe application of mosquito coils did not necessarily reduce the incidence of malaria in the study communities. It however presented a potential respiratory risk factor, which should be further investigated by critically examining exposure to particulate matter emissions from burning coils.
Highlights
The use of mosquito coils has gained widespread patronage in malaria-endemic countries, even though it is not a recommended preventive measure for avoiding mosquitoes
The cumulative average patronage was greater than 100 % because some respondents reported co-application of different mosquito avoidance methods, that is, they applied more than one method
The high patronage of the mosquito coil partly contributed to the difficulty in achieving high rate of patronage for mosquito net application in the study districts, despite the free provision of these nets to households [9]
Summary
The use of mosquito coils has gained widespread patronage in malaria-endemic countries, even though it is not a recommended preventive measure for avoiding mosquitoes. Mosquito coils contain insecticides, which are expected to vaporize slowly once the coil is lit, to provide protection against the mosquito. The mosquito coil base material contains a variety of compounds capable of burning slowly to gradually release the insecticide. A key aspect of malaria control programmes, globally, is Hogarh et al Malar J (2016) 15:61 afford insecticide-based IRS because of the cost involved [4]. A greater majority of households, especially the urban poor and rural dwellers, use mosquito coils to control/ repel the mosquito. The use of mosquito coils occupies a certain niche in the control of mosquitoes in poor countries that need to be adequately researched
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