Authors

R Stothard¹; * Hugs team¹;  ¹ Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, UK

Discussion

*see www.lstmed.ac.uk/hugs
Infections with schistosome blood flukes cause schistosomiasis and elicit a variety of short- and long-term health consequences. Only until relatively recently, however, has their impact on genital tract disease become been better appreciated, particularly in considerations of gender-specific pathologies. Though some of these dimensions in pathology may overlap, male genital schistosomiasis has some unique characteristics. This spans across individual disease management to appropriate public health management. In this presentation, whilst working with HUGS colleagues, I highlight recent work in Malawi to assess appropriate point-of-care diagnostics, description of community prevalence within fishermen, clinical description of disease by portable ultrasonography and integrated surveillance of the effectiveness of repeated rounds of praziquantel treatment. Looking to the future in Malawi, and across sub-Saharan Africa more generally, I outline the wider future importance of male genital schistosomiasis and shed new light on co-infection with other parasites and pathogens. Upon closing, I sketch out new aspects of previously cryptic zoonotic transmission that will challenge future public health attempts to eliminate genital schistosomiasis across both genders.