Public health: Over 1.4million Kenyans infested with jiggers

By Renson Buluma

The Ministry of Public Health and Sanitation has revealed that over 1.4 million Kenyans are infested with jiggers.

According to Senior Public Health Officer in charge of Vector Control and Environmental Health Peter Wanjohi, Central, Western, Coast, Rift Valley and Nyanza provinces are the most affected areas.

Speaking during Inter agency coordinating committee workshop held at Farmview Hotel in Busia town, Mr Wanjohi blamed the high rate of jigger infestation on poverty, poor housing and sanitation.

Participants at the workshop included provincial public health officers from across the country, university students, teachers and other related agencies.

He said children under the age of 10years, the elderly and the physically and mentally disabled persons were among the groups that were most vulnerable to the jigger infestation.

He added that the menace had become ‘a major cause of infirmity for the elderly in affected populations’.

"Jigger menace is causing disfiguring of feet which mostly affects the walking of victims in endemic areas," said Wanjohi.

He cited poor housing with dusty floors, poor personal hygiene practices such as infrequent washing of feet and poverty as some of the factors that influence jigger infestation.

He added that there was need for urgent behavioural and sanitation interventions to control the problem.

"Physical provision of proper housing and modification of existing structures such as plastering of walls and smoothening of floors with cement mortar, slime or cow dung are vital in helping to control infestation," he said.

He reiterated the need for the public to be provided with information that would help avoid infestations.

He said messages of personal hygiene should be disseminated house to house by community-based organisations or school health sessions.

Wanjohi said although spraying of infested households and pets with insecticides has been on-going, the activity has been unsustainable because of stigmatisation, lack of community participation in planning, implementation and evaluation in the fumigation and treatment programmes.