Abstract
BackgroundFemale mosquitoes serve as vectors for a host of illnesses, including malaria, spread by the Plasmodium parasite. Despite monumental strides to reduce this disease burden through tools such as bed nets, the rate of these gains is slowing. Ongoing disruptions related to the COVID-19 pandemic may also negatively impact gains. The following scoping review was conducted to examine novel means of reversing this trend by exploring the efficacy of insecticide-treated window screens or eaves to reduce Anopheles mosquito bites, mosquito house entry, and density.MethodsTwo reviewers independently searched PubMed, Scopus, and ProQuest databases on 10 July, 2020 for peer-reviewed studies using insecticide-treated screens or eaves in malaria-endemic countries. These articles were published in English between the years 2000–2020. Upon collection, the reports were stratified into categories of biting incidence and protective efficacy, mosquito entry and density, and mosquito mortality.ResultsThirteen out of 2180 articles were included in the final review. Eaves treated with beta-cyfluthrin, transfluthrin or bendiocarb insecticides were found to produce vast drops in blood-feeding, biting or mosquito prevalence. Transfluthrin-treated eaves were reported to have greater efficacy at reducing mosquito biting: Rates dropped by 100% both indoors and outdoors under eave ribbon treatments of 0.2% transfluthrin (95% CI 0.00–0.00; p < 0.001). Additionally, co-treating window screens and eaves with polyacrylate-binding agents and with pirimiphos-methyl has been shown to retain insecticidal potency after several washes, with a mosquito mortality rate of 94% after 20 washes (95% CI 0.74–0.98; p < 0.001).ConclusionsThe results from this scoping review suggest that there is value in implementing treated eave tubes or window screens. More data are needed to study the longevity of screens and household attitudes toward these interventions.
Highlights
Female mosquitoes serve as vectors for a host of illnesses, including malaria, spread by the Plasmodium parasite
The inclusion criteria comprised: (1) data reported from malaria-endemic countries in the World Health Organization (WHO) regions of subSaharan Africa, Southeast Asia, the Eastern Mediterranean, the Western Pacific, and South America; (2) studies reported in English; (3) interventions investigating Anopheles mosquitoes using insecticide-treated netting for window screens and eaves; (4) studies that used empirical methods, meaning the collection and analysis
Thirteen final articles were identified out of the remaining 64 studies that met all the inclusion criteria (Fig. 1) [10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,20,21,22]. These 13 articles assessed interventions based on their overall effect on biting incidence, protective efficacy, mosquito entry and density, mosquito mortality, and participant attitudes toward the mosquito
Summary
Female mosquitoes serve as vectors for a host of illnesses, including malaria, spread by the Plasmodium parasite. Openings in walls and other points of entry, once closed, can bar vectors from biting indoors during their active hours. Tools such as insecticide-treated window screens and eaves are designed to do just that, along with the added community effect of reducing mosquito populations due to the insecticide treatment. These devices are not as widely prioritized in the fight against malaria compared to bed net programmes or indoor residual spraying [6]. Addressing housing quality could help to alleviate other issues of poverty by identifying household needs and concerns
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary 
Published Version (
Free)
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call