An analysis on the behavioral, economic, and social patterning of Schistosoma japonicum infections in endemic areas in the Philippines and other endemic Southeast Asian countries

• Main Authors: Ledesma, Ava Sabine L., Solera, Cyd Justin T.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2023
• Subjects: Schistosoma japonicum > Philippines; Schistosoma japonicum > Southeast Asian; Schistosomiasis > Philippines; Biology
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etdb_bio/40; https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/context/etdb_bio/article/1051/viewcontent/2023_Ledesma_Solera_An_analysis_on_the_behavioral_economic_and_social_patterning_Full_text.pdf
• Institution: De La Salle University

Schistosomiasis is currently endemic in 28 provinces in the Philippines and it has been a challenge to eradicate the disease. Various risk factors of the infectivity of schistosomiasis were explored by numerous studies. These risk factors are mainly limited to the environment, ecology, and behavioral patterns of the Schistosoma japonicum. However, social and cultural risk factors are often neglected. There are many ways for a community to get infected by S. japonicum, and social contexts of water-related behavior of communities can be significant. Thus, this study aimed to distinguish other risk factors that contribute to schistosomiasis by analyzing the social pattern of infection and examining the influence of behavioral, sociocultural, and economic factors on its infectivity in endemic communities in the Philippines. Data extraction from a total of 41 selected studies was done by including other endemic Southeast Asian countries, but mostly focused on literature based on the Philippines. Data such as study area, sample size, risk factors, and prevalence were extracted for this study. Based on the analyzed studies, the water-contact activities that mainly affect schistosomiasis infectivity are the following: bathing, washing clothes/doing laundry, swimming, and playing in the water. In the Philippines, these activities have been proven to be related significantly to higher intensity of infection. The most recurring sociocultural factors were sources of livelihood, such as fishing and planting. The extracted studies have also revealed that men are more prone to infection due to these sources of livelihood, relating sex and occupation as drivers of the intensity of infection. Lastly, the economic factors most identified among the studies were socioeconomic status and access to clean sanitation, including hygiene practices and drinking water sources. Most of the studies showed results that determined that lack of sanitation is highly correlated with infectivity. The sociocultural elements had a bigger relevance than the other factors overall, with one of the most important considerations in the research being means of livelihood. The current study concludes that behavioral, economic, and sociocultural factors showed its association with infectivity, with high correlations with risk and prevalence. The findings of the study are significant in determining the most effective control strategies for each endemic province, by focusing more on the social patterning of each community. Focusing more on the behavioral, sociocultural, and economic risk factors that were found to have the most influence on infectivity may contribute to implementing more long-term and sustainable efforts.