Excitement about Bed Net Success

As part of his research, Ned Walker travels regularly to Africa and international conferences. Here are short reflections from two trips:

I just returned from the annual conference of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, where some of our work was presented but where further there is a general excitement about the clear reductions in incidence of malaria owing to national roll out campaigns of bed nets in Africa.

On my trip to Kenya I consulted with local Kenyans about this idea, in particular to pick some communities (villages) that we could use as partnered sites for a net distribution program. Two villages -- Tiengre and Kakwema -- near Kisumu in western Kenya are interested and offer local cooperation.

Why Bed Nets?

Despite its apparently simplicity, malaria has resisted rigorous attempts to control it. That is, until recently when insecticide-treated bed nets have emerged as a powerful and simple control tool. What we don't know is whether malaria will find some way to overcome this disruption to its system. That's what Ned Walker and his team are studying.