Present Status of the Schistosomiasis Control Program in the Philippines

The schistosomiasis control program in the Philippines actually started with the findings of Pesigan et al. published in 1959. A manual for an integrated schistosomiasis control program was prepared delineating the responsibilities of the participating agencies. Methods of control included the four-pronged approaches consisting of agro-engineering methods of snail control, environmental sanitation measures, health education and to a certain extent, treatment of cases with Stibophen. Schistosomiasis or snail fever is one of the important disease problems in the Philippines. Primarily rural in distribution, schistosomiasis has socioeconomic ramifications, since it affects mostly farmers and their families and thus hampers agricultural productivity. The schistosomiasis control components include the health and infrastructure aspects. The results of the schistosomiasis control efforts during the last 4 years show an encouraging trend, with the prevalence dropping from a baseline 10.2 to 6.0%.