Background: Agro-ecological systems have been associated with increased malaria intensity. This study determined association between different agro-ecological systems, prevalence of malaria parasitaemia and anaemia in Mvomero district, Tanzania.
Methods: The study was carried out in three agro-ecosystems namely, savannah, rice-irrigation, and sugarcane. Malaria and anaemia prevalence were measured in four seasons of a year. Villages were categorized according to environmental characteristics, proportion of water-shaded areas and agro-ecosystems. Mixed-effects logistic regression analysis was used to determine factors associated with malaria infection.
Results: A total of 7888 individuals were involved with the overall malaria prevalence of 34.4%. Plasmodium falciparum was the dominant (99.52%) malaria species. Malaria prevalence was highest (42.9%) in children of 10-15 years of age, and significantly low during dry and hot season. Of the infected individuals, 78.1% were from rice-irrigation, 18.7% savannah and 3.2% sugarcane ecosystem. Individuals living in villages with high levels of water-shaded areas had highest malaria risk. Over three-quarters (78.9%) of the individuals slept under a mosquito net, with the highest (88.5%) coverage among individuals in sugarcane ecosystem. On average 47.1% of the children were anaemic. Anaemia was more prevalent (60.5%) among individuals in the savannah than in the rice-irrigation (48.2%) or sugarcane communities (23%). Analysis indicated that ecosystems and levels of water-shaded area were highly correlated, and altered levels of malaria infection. Gender, age, mosquito net-use, and season were other significant determinants of P. falciparum infection. Males had higher odds than females (OR = 1.16, 95% CI 1.05, 1.29). The risk for children 6-9 years and older children (10-15 years) was over 50% and 24%, respectively, higher compared to young ones (0-5 years). Use of mosquito net reduced malaria risk by 26%. The risk of infection was higher during dry and cool season (OR = 1.92, 95 %CI 1.66, 2.23) compared to other seasons. Living in villages with high level of water-shaded areas increased the chances of getting malaria up to 15 times than living in drier areas. Similarly, infection odds increased when living in savannah and rice-irrigation ecosystems than in the sugarcane ecosystem.
Conclusions: Findings show significant variations in malaria prevalence between communities living in different agro-ecosystems within the same district. Local malaria control strategies should consider these variations and liaise with agricultural experts while designing interventions to maximize effectiveness.
Keywords: Agro-ecosystems; Anaemia; Malaria; Parasitaemia; Tanzania.