Residents in Kenyan Highlands Seek Malaria Treatment From Local Shops, Could Delay Recovery, Study Says

A significant proportion of Kenya's highland population receives initial malaria treatment from local shops, which can result in inappropriate medication and delayed recovery time, according to a study published recently in Malaria Journal, the East African reports.

For the study, Peter Sumba of the Kenya Medical Research Institute and Lindsey Wong of the Wake Forest University School of Medicine and colleagues distributed a questionnaire to 117 randomly selected households in the malaria-endemic rural highland area of Kipsamoite, Kenya. The researchers recruited study participants from all seven villages in the area, which has a total population of 3,200. According to the study's findings, self-reported malaria cases occurred in 100 adults and 66 children. About 66% of adults and about 66.7% of children sought initial malaria treatment at medical facilities, and about 19% of adults and 30% of children sought initial treatment at local shops, the study found.

According to the researchers, people who visited medical facilities were more likely to recover from malaria and less likely to require further treatment than those who visited local shops. In addition, people who visited medical facilities reported receiving malaria drugs more frequently than those who visited local shops. The study also found that some local shops provide ineffective malaria medications, which can delay recovery time and effective treatment of the disease. In addition, the study found that decisions about where and when to seek treatment were made independently of perceived symptom severity, education level and distance from health centers.

According to the East African, the study can help health workers in the region identify current resource use and direct resources toward improving intervention programs by identifying when and where people seek malaria treatment. According to the researchers, malaria interventions and program management could be improved by educating shopkeepers about the importance of prompt malaria diagnosis and proper treatments. The study concluded that early and appropriate treatment is essential to reducing malaria morbidity and mortality in the region (Ochieng, East African, 12/13).

The study is available online (.pdf).