Insecticide-Treated Bednets Improve Child Survival

Mortality rates were 44% lower in rural Kenyan children who used insecticide-treated bednets than in those who did not.

Controlled trials have shown that use of insecticide-treated bednets (ITNs) reduces all-cause early childhood mortality in malaria-endemic areas by about 20%. Would benefits be similar when ITNs are delivered outside of experimental settings? In a longitudinal study starting in 2004, researchers surveyed a dynamic cohort of about 3500 rural Kenyan children aged 1 month to 59 months three times at yearly intervals. In the four districts involved in the study, ITN use among children aged <5 years increased from 7% in 2004 to 67% in 2006.

During the 2-year study period, mortality rates were 44% lower in ITN users than in nonusers. The authors calculated that seven deaths were prevented for every 1000 ITNs used. Considerable geographic variation…

Reviewing Author

Mary E. Wilson, MD

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardOneHealthTrust (formerly Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics, and Policy); Global Health Institute, University of Wisconsin

RoyaltiesUpToDate

Editorial BoardsJournal of Travel Medicine

Mary E. Wilson, MD

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardOneHealthTrust (formerly Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics, and Policy); Global Health Institute, University of Wisconsin

RoyaltiesUpToDate

Editorial BoardsJournal of Travel Medicine

Insecticide-Treated Bednets Improve Child Survival

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Reviewing Author