Abstract:
There is an increasing awareness of the association between tourism activity and risks of
emerging mosquito-borne diseases (MBDs) worldwide. In previous studies we showed that
hotels in Zanzibar may play an important role in maintaining residual foci of mosquito vectors
populations of public health concern. These findings indicated larval sources removal (LSR)
interventions may have a significant negative impact on vector communities. However, a
thorough analysis of the response vector species to potential LSM strategies must be evaluated
prior to implementation of a large-scale area-wide control campaign. Here we propose
a protocol for evaluation of the impact of LSR against mosquito vectors at hotel settings in
Zanzibar. This protocol is set to determine the efficacy of LSR in a randomized control partial
cross-over experimental design with four hotel compounds representing the unit of randomization
for allocation of interventions. However, the protocol can be applied to evaluate the
impact of LRS in more than four sites. Proposed interventions are active removal of disposed
containers, and installation of water dispenser to replace single use discarded plastic
water bottles, which were identified as the most important source of mosquitoes studied
hotels. The ideal time for allocating intervention to the intervention arms the dry season,
when the mosquito abundance is predictably lower. The possible impact of interventions on
mosquito occurrence and abundance risks is then evaluated throughout subsequent rainy
and dry seasons. If an appreciable reduction in mosquito abundance and occurrence risks
is observed during the trial period, intervention could be extended to the control arm to determine
whether any potential reduction of mosquito density is reproducible. A rigorous evaluation
of the proposed LRS interventions will inspire large scale trials and provide support for evidence-based mosquito management at hotel facilities in Zanzibar and similar settings.
