Authors

K S Rock²; S J Torr¹; M J Keeling²;  ¹ Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine;  ² Warwick University

Discussion

Human African trypanosomiasis (HAT,sleeping sickness) still persists in some regions despite recent investment in control efforts. The Democratic of Congo (DRC) has 87% of global HAT cases in 2014 and within the country, Bandundu Province has a disproportionate number of these.Currently the DRC relies almost exclusively on medical intervention, however continuing under this strategy alone will likely fail to meet the WHO elimination target by 2020. Using mathematicalmodelling in conjunction with data from Bandundu province in DRC, a range of enhanced intervention strategies are simulated to project when the WHO target may be met. It was found that just improving recruiting of previously non-participating groups in mass screening was better than the current strategy, however unless screening captures almost all of this high-risk group, the 2020 goal will still be missed. Vector control was found to be highly efficacious even with modest (60%) tsetse density reductions. In all strategies considered with a vector control component, the WHO target was predicted to be met within 3 years of starting a large-scale tiny-target campaign, and with highly effective (90%) reductions it could take just a single year.