Publication Cover
Global Public Health
An International Journal for Research, Policy and Practice
Volume 6, 2011 - Issue 4
291
Views
6
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Articles

Mitigating social and health inequities: Community participation and Chagas disease in rural Argentina

, &
Pages 371-384 | Received 09 Oct 2009, Accepted 15 Oct 2010, Published online: 12 Jan 2011
 

Abstract

Chagas disease (CD) causes 12,500 deaths annually in Latin America. As a neglected disease primarily associated with poverty, it is a major driver of health inequity. Argentina's efforts to control vector transmission have been unsuccessful. Using new survey data (n=400 households), we compare the social patterning of the burden of CD by examining socio-demographic predictors of self-reported CD and the presence of vinchucas in two areas of rural northern Argentina known to have experienced different interventions in surveillance and control. Our analyses suggest that Avellaneda, an area known for horizontal intervention strategies which nurture community participation is quite distinct from Silípica, an area which has experienced a vertical intervention strategy since 1990. Avellaneda has higher level of self-reported Chagas infection and lower level of vinchuca presence; Silípica has pronounced and statistically significant differences patterned by the head of household's level of educational attainment. A greater awareness of the disease and its transmission, along with community mobilisation and spraying, may bring about more self-reported CD and less vinchuca presence in Avellaneda than in Silípica. This suggests that strategies based on community participation may be effective in reducing the social patterning of the burden of disease, even in poor places.

Acknowledgements

The investigators wish to acknowledge the UNICEF/UNDP/World Bank/WHO–TDR for funding this research, to Dr Elsa Segura, to the communities of Avellaneda and Silípica and to faculties and students of Universidad Nacional de Santiago del Estero for their support during the fieldwork.

Log in via your institution

Log in to Taylor & Francis Online

PDF download + Online access
  • 48 hours access to article PDF & online version
  • Article PDF can be downloaded
  • Article PDF can be printed
USD 53.00 Add to cart
* Local tax will be added as applicable

Related Research

People also read lists articles that other readers of this article have read.

Recommended articles lists articles that we recommend and is powered by our AI driven recommendation engine.

Cited by lists all citing articles based on Crossref citations.
Articles with the Crossref icon will open in a new tab.