A survey of Simulium control in Africa.

It has become possible to control or even eradicate the Simulium fly vectors of Onchocerca volvulus, the causative organism of onchocerciasis. There are two vectors in Africa-namely, S. damnosum, characteristic of the rivers of West Africa, and S. neavei, which breeds on the carapaces of crabs in the streams of East Africa. The use of DDT applied to the water at a concentration as low as 0.1 p.p.m. for 30 minutes eliminates the larvae of Simulium. Such larvicidal methods have eradicated S. neavei from western Kenya and virtually eradicated S. damnosum from the Victoria Nile in Uganda. Excellent control sufficient to render the transmission of onchocerciasis almost negligible has been obtained at Léopoldville (Republic of the Congo) and in circumscribed areas in southern Chad, Northern Nigeria, and Sierra Leone. The following survey describes operational research on Simulium control carried out in Kenya, Uganda, the Congo, Chad, Nigeria, Ghana, Upper Volta and Sierra Leone.