Kargbo-Labour, Ibrahim
Bah, Mohamed S.
Melchers, Natalie V. S. Vinkeles
Conteh, Abdulai
Redwood-Sawyerr, Victoria
Stolk, Wilma A.
Paye, Jusufu
Sonnie, Mustapha
Veinoglou, Amy
Koroma, Joseph B.
Hodges, Mary H.
Weaver, Angela M.
Zhang, Yaobi
Article History
Received: 5 September 2023
Accepted: 15 February 2024
First Online: 11 March 2024
Declarations
:
: The onchocerciasis impact assessment was part of the monitoring and evaluation activities of the national NTD elimination program and was conducted by the NTDP of the Ministry of Health and Sanitation (MOHS) Sierra Leone per WHO recommendations. Ethical approval for the survey was obtained from the MOHS Research and Ethics Committee. Prior to the surveys, letters from the national NTDP to the traditional authorities requesting permission to carry out the survey were delivered by the DHMTs. Oral informed consent/assent was first obtained from head teachers and/or village chiefs and then from parents/guardians on behalf of each child and by each child participant before samples were collected, and their acceptance was recorded on a form by the leader of the survey team, as literacy rates are low in the country. All participants were eligible for inclusion without discrimination on gender, social status, religion or ethnicity. Recruitment was voluntary, and participants were encouraged to ask questions concerning the survey and their right not to participate and/or to withdraw at any time without repercussions. The data were securely stored in the NTDP database, and no identity of participants can be revealed upon publication of this paper.
: Not applicable.
: The authors declare that they have no competing interests.