January 30, 2024
DW3 Spotlight on World NTD Day
Read the full story on Global WACh
On World Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) Day, we celebrate the accomplishments of the DeWorm3 study in the fight against NTDs and call on the global health community to renew our commitment to creating a healthier, more equitable world for all.
DeWorm3 is a large clinical trial that aims to determine the feasibility of interrupting the transmission of parasitic worms, known as Soil Transmitted Helminths (STH), through community-wide mass drug administration (cMDA) that provides deworming medication to individuals of all ages in selected communities in Benin, Malawi, and India. STH are associated with nutritional deficiencies, cognitive impairment, and developmental problems amongst people who are heavily infected. The World Health Organization estimates that 1.5 billion individuals are infected with STH, representing 24% of the world’s population. The project began in 2016 with results expected in Spring of 2024.
Our Accomplishments
DeWorm3 successfully delivered six rounds of cMDA and school-based MDA, distributing over 890,000 doses in three countries and has collected and tested over 120,000 stool samples for selected STH species. In addition to the main aims of the study, the DeWorm3 team has analyzed the costs of delivering cMDA vs school-based deworming as well as structural readiness to transition to and scale-up cMDA programs in the three countries. Additionally, the Implementation Science team conducted a qualitative study with policy stakeholders at local, state, national and global level to gauge their thoughts regarding interrupting STH transmission and determined barriers and facilitators to implementation (Roll 2022).
DeWorm3 has published over 50 papers to date, which can be accessed here: https://depts.washington.edu/deworm3/publications/journal-publications/
Our Next Steps
In the next six months, the team will disseminate final findings from the study to communities living in study sites, Ministries of Health, and the broader STH Stakeholders, including the World Health Organization (WHO).
Our Contribution to the WHO Sustainable Development Goal
DeWorm3 is a testament to the importance of strong community engagement and global research collaboration. DeWorm3 findings will continue to advance the WHO Sustainable Development Goal 3.3 and WHO milestones and targets outlined in the Ending the neglect to attain the Sustainable Development Goals: a road map for neglected tropical diseases 2021−2030.
Read the full story on Global WACh