Long-Term Impact of the World Bank Loan Project for Schistosomiasis Control: A Comparison of the Spatial Distribution of Schistosomiasis Risk in China

摘要

Schistosomiasis japonica is an important disease in China with a documented history of more than 2,100 years. The World Bank Loan Project (WBLP) implemented during 1992–2001 contributed greatly to China's schistosomiasis control. This study shows that the long-term impact of WBLP strategy on schistosomiasis control was not ideal. It can only maintain the morbidity of schistosomiasis at a low level, but can not reduce it further. Also, the WBLP strategy could not effectively compress the spatial distribution of schistosomiasis risk. To achieve further reductions in schistosomiasis-affected areas, and for sustainable control, focusing on controlling the intermediate host snail in the lake and marshland regions was suggested to be the next step to interrupt schistosomiasis transmission within the two most affected regions surrounding the Dongting and Poyang Lakes. While in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, the WBLP's morbidity control strategy may need to continue for some time until snails in the upriver provinces have been well controlled.