Trends in ITN Use Prevalence among Children Attending for Malaria Diagnosis in the Main Sentinel Site for Malaria Surveillance of Gabon: Data from 2010 to 2020

Abstract

Aim: The aim of this study was to assess the trends of ITN use and age disparities among children attending for malaria diagnosis in the main sentinel site for malaria surveillance of Gabon. Methodology: Data were collected from September 2023 to October 2023 at the malaria sentinel site for malaria survey of the Regional Hospital of Melen in Gabon. Data from 2010 to 2020, including age, gender, years of screening and ITN use the night before the consultation were reported on a case report form. Results: Data from 13687 children were analyzed, the rate of ITN use was 57.7% (n=7902). The trend of ITN use decreased significantly from 76.2% in 2011 to 41.9% in 2017, with a slight increase until 2019 (54.9%). According to age, use of ITN was more frequently reported in infants (64.1%) and children aged between 2 to less than 5 years (57.1%) compared to older children (53.1%) and adolescents (51.2%) (P<0.01). Although the rate of mosquito net use significantly decreased in all the age groups, the odds of net use remained the highest in children under 5 years and lowest among the adolescents (P<0.01). Conclusion: The ITN use coverage is still insufficient in Libreville. Efforts should be done to achieve the universal coverage of ITN ownership and use toreduce malaria transmission in Gabon.