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. 2023 Dec 7;13(1):21590.
doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-49200-3.

Long-lasting household damage from Cyclone Idai increases malaria risk in rural western Mozambique

Kelly M Searle  1 , Dominique E Earland  2 , Albino Francisco Bibe  3 , Anísio Novela  4 , Vali Muhiro  4 , João L Ferrão  5
Affiliations

Long-lasting household damage from Cyclone Idai increases malaria risk in rural western Mozambique

Kelly M Searle et al. Sci Rep. .

Abstract

Cyclone Idai in 2019 was one of the worst tropical cyclones recorded in the Southern Hemisphere. The storm caused catastrophic damage and led to a humanitarian crisis in Mozambique. The affected population suffered a cholera epidemic on top of housing and infrastructure damage and loss of life. The housing and infrastructure damage sustained during Cyclone Idai still has not been addressed in all affected communities. This is of grave concern because storm damage results in poor housing conditions which are known to increase the risk of malaria. Mozambique has the 4th highest malaria prevalence in sub-Saharan Africa and is struggling to control malaria in most of the country. We conducted a community-based cross-sectional survey in Sussundenga Village, Manica Province, Mozambique in December 2019-February 2020. We found that most participants (64%) lived in households that sustained damage during Cyclone Idai. The overall malaria prevalence was 31% measured by rapid diagnostic test (RDT). When controlling for confounding variables, the odds of malaria infection was nearly threefold higher in participants who lived in households damaged by Cyclone Idai nearly a year after the storm. This highlights the need for long-term disaster response to improve the efficiency and success of malaria control efforts.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Map of enumerated households and selected households in Sussundenga, Mozambique.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Distribution of households with RDT positive and negative participants.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Distribution of household damage.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Malaria prevalence by level of household damage.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Adjusted odds ratios from multivariable logistic regression model of household damage and malaria infection.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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