Abstract
Malaria is a major health problem facing many tropical countries, including Ghana. The use of modern mechanisms to study environmental factors in malaria occurrence is imperative in malaria control efforts. The aim of this research is to investigate how malaria occurrence is influenced by environmental factors and how Geographical Information Systems (GIS) can be used as a mechanism for improving malaria control in healthcare delivery in Ghana. Environmental factors, elevation, daily temperature and daily rainfall were plotted against prevalence of M and S forms of mosquitoes using ArcGIS 10.1. Prevalence of Anopheles gambiae M was the highest at elevations of 0 m to 200 m and that of S was the highest at elevations between 200 m and 500 m. Prevalence of M was the highest at temperatures between 26.1°C - 27.6°C whilst that of S was the highest at temperatures of between 24.5°C and 26.0°C. Prevalence of M was the highest at rainfall between 10 mm and 35 mm and S was the highest at rainfall between 26 mm and 36 mm and beyond. M form was positively correlated with temperature and negatively with elevation and humidity. The S form was negatively associated with temperature and positively with elevation and rainfall. GIS models can combine with environmental data to estimate vector prevalence under environmental conditions and therefore its use is recommended in Ghana.
Highlights
Malaria occurrence is prevalent in Ghana and it is the leading cause of illness; about 8200 reported cases daily; 3,000,000 illnesses yearly; and over 3000 deaths in the year 2010 alone [1]
It has been asserted that Geographical Information Systems (GIS) could be used to map environmental factors that influence the occurrence of malaria [8], because environment factors have a substantial influence on malaria occurrence, which could be treated through the use of drugs such as quinine, doxycycline, artemether with lumefantrine, as well as atovaquone with proguanil [4] [9]
The results show that environmental factors affect the distribution of gambiae M and S
Summary
Malaria occurrence is prevalent in Ghana and it is the leading cause of illness; about 8200 reported cases daily; 3,000,000 illnesses yearly; and over 3000 deaths in the year 2010 alone [1]. The sensu stricto forms of the Mopti (M) and Savanna (S) strains constitute the most pervasive group of mosquitoes in relation to the transmission of malaria in Ghana, and it is diagnosed using microscopy where blood smears are taken from a finger prick and studied under a microscope to ascertain the presence or otherwise of the parasite [6]. These types of mosquitoes represent the most dangerous parasites in Africa, South of the Sahara. GIS has huge potentials to help improve the management of electronic medical records, medical personnel and other health resources in relation to malaria in Ghana [10]
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