Factors influencing re-treatment of conventional mosquito nets among households in Uganda

Abstract

The objective of this study was to investigate factors affecting re-treatment of conventional mosquito nets in Uganda. The investigations were based on secondary data sourced from the 2009 Malaria Indicator Survey. Assessment was done using 629 records of Households that used conventional mosquito nets. The analysis was done using frequency distributions and the probit regression. According to the results, only 14% of households re-treated their conventional mosquito nets. At the multivariable analysis, re-treatment of conventional mosquito nets was more likely among households in the northern region (p<0.05) compared to the central region. Further, households that used nets for two years (p<0.05) were more likely to re-treat their nets compared to households that had used their nets for one year. In order to increase net-re-treatment levels in Uganda, this study recommends that stakeholders involved in planning and implementing Malaria prevention strategies should promote re-treatment campaigns in regions of the country that have high Malaria incidence rates. Country wide sensitization should be done to enable people differentiate between long lasting nets (LLINs) and conventional mosquito nets and the importance of the latter should be emphasized. People should be sensitized on the importance of mosquito net re-treatment following the WHO recommended re-treatment intervals.