Abstract
Malaria is a serious burden to public health. Factors causing persistence and re-emergence of malaria can be best understood using mathematical models to predict possible outcomes with control strategies. In this paper, a mathematical model to study the dynamics of malaria control using DDT house spraying is developed. The model is designed under the assumption that DDT house spraying keeps away mosquitoes from entering houses and thereby reducing bites from mosquito vector to human host. The model is analyzed at equilibrium and the stability explored. Results indicate that applying DDT significantly reduces malaria prevalence. As more people spray, more mosquito are kept away. This in turn leads to less bites, and low disease prevalence, and the overall size of the epidemic reduced. If another disease invades the population, the prevalence is low and co-infections minimal. The main conclusion is that DDT reduces mosquito bites, but consistent house spraying is desirable for the eradication of malaria.
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Nannyonga, B., Mugisha, J.Y.T. & Luboobi, L.S. Evaluating the effectiveness of DDT house spraying in persistent and re-emerging malaria. Afr. Mat. 24, 209–221 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13370-011-0053-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13370-011-0053-7