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Seasonal variation in trachoma and bush flies in north‐western Australian Aboriginal communities
Author(s) -
Da Cruz Lyndon,
Dadour Ian R,
McAllister IanL,
Jackson Alistair,
Isaacs Tim
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
clinical and experimental ophthalmology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.3
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1442-9071
pISSN - 1442-6404
DOI - 10.1046/j.1442-6404.2002.00491.x
Subject(s) - trachoma , dry season , wet season , medicine , geography , demography , veterinary medicine , environmental health , toxicology , biology , ecology , pathology , sociology
Background: Among younger age groups trachoma ( Chlamydiatrachomatis ) has been identified as a major cause of morbidityin Australian Aboriginal communities. North‐western Australia hastwo seasons, referred to as the wet and the dry, and until recentlymost trachoma screening programmes were conducted during the dry season.This study compared the prevalence of trachoma between three Aboriginalcommunities, two in the west and one in the east Kimberleys withdifferences in adult bush fly ( Musca vetustissima ) populations between the wet and dry seasons. Methods: All preschool and school‐aged children in each community were screened for trachoma in February and July 1996 using the World Health Organization method for clinical assessment of trachoma. Flies were trapped fortnightly from September through to May (inclusive) using a wind‐orientated fly trap. Results: Two communities in the west Kimberleys had a significantly higher rate of trachoma during the wet season (14−59% in dry season compared with 46−69% in wet season). One community showed no difference but this was probably due to the reduced re‐screening rate. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that fly populations are so low during the dry season that they were untrappable; however, populations of bush fly significantly increased during the wet season (ranging from 6 to 146 flies per hectare per month). Conclusions: If bush fly populations are correlated with increased levels of trachoma, then measures aimed at augmenting public health plans for bush fly control may decrease the cross‐infection rate. Additionally, based on the results of this study, wet season trachoma screening trips should be considered.