Influenza vaccination among the elderly in Bangkok.

This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of influenza vaccinations among the elderly in Bangkok in reducing influenza-like illness (ILI) and influenza-related complications. Using a non-randomized, controlled, prospective methodology, healthy, active people aged 60 years or more, living in the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) area, were studied. The two study cohorts comprised 519 persons in the vaccinated group and 520 in the non-vaccinated group. The outcome under study was influenza-like illness (ILI), as reported by the study volunteers. The two groups were comparable for most socio-demographic characteristics, except for gender, level of education, marital status, and smoking habit. The age range was 60-88 years (mean: 68 years). Females outnumbered males in both groups, with ratio of female to male of 2.6:1 and 1.9:1 in the vaccinated and non-vaccinated groups, respectively. The top three co-morbidities among these groups were hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and heart disease, in that order. Only 1% of the volunteers reported lung disease as co-morbidity. During the 12-month study period, a total of 107 volunteers reported ILI in both groups, with 38 persons in the vaccinated group and 69 persons in the non-vaccinated group. There were 46 ILI episodes in the vaccinated group, and 86 in the non-vaccinated group, for a total of 132 episodes. The incidence rates rates of influenza in this population, therefore, were 8.9% for the vaccinated and 16.9% for the non-vaccinated groups; with a reduction in the rate of reported ILI and doctor visits of 8%. Vaccine effectiveness was rated at 47.6%, crude risk ratio at 1.9 (1.33-2.75), and adjusted risk ratio at 1.92 (95% CI: 1.25-2.95), after adjustment for gender, marital status, education, and smoking habit. No complications due to ILI were observed in this population during the study period. Hospitalizations during this period were due to non-ILI related causes, such as cancer and accident.

Containing artemisinin resistance of Plasmodium falciparum in Myanmar: achievements, challenges and the way forward.

Artemisinin resistance is a major threat to global malaria control and elimination efforts. Myanmar detected the first indication of the resistance in 2009 in the eastern part of the country, bordering Thailand. Since 2010, WHO has played a vital role in ensuring that a comprehensive programme on the containment of the resistance is in place. This paper documents achievement made in terms of output, outcomes and early impact on malaria from July 2011 to December 2013. It also identifies enabling factors to success and, most importantly, challenges awaiting the national programme and its partners.

Initial assessment of the acceptability of a Push-Pull Aedes aegypti control strategy in Iquitos, Peru and Kanchanaburi, Thailand.

As part of a larger research program evaluating chemical threshold levels for a Push-Pull intervention to reduce man-vector (Aedes aegypti) contact, this qualitative study explored local perceptions and strategies associated with mosquito control within dengue-endemic communities in Peru and Thailand. Focus groups were used to provide preliminary information that would identify possible public acceptance issues to the Push-Pull strategy in each site. Nine focus group discussions (total of 102 individuals) conducted between September 2008 and March 2009 examined several themes: 1) current mosquito control practices; 2) perceptions of spatial repellency and contact irritancy versus killing mosquitoes; and 3) initial perceptions toward mosquito host-seeking traps. Results indicate participants use household-level strategies for insect control that reveal familiarity with the concept of spatial repellent and contact irritant actions of chemicals and that placing traps in the peridomestic environment to remove repelled mosquitoes was acceptable. Preliminary evidence suggests a Push-Pull strategy should be well accepted in these locations. These results will be beneficial for developing future large scale push-pull interventions and are currently being used to guide insecticide application strategies in (entomological) proof-of-concept studies using experimental huts.