Metadata variables from Progress towards the implementation of control programmes for strongyloidiasis in endemic areas: estimation of number of adults in need of ivermectin for strongyloidiasis

The World Health Organization (WHO) has started a process to issue guidelines for the control of strongyloidiasis. The guidelines might recommend to implement preventive chemotherapy (PC) at community level (i.e. to all individuals above 5 years of age), over a defined prevalence threshold. We previously estimated the number of school-age children (SAC) who would need PC. Here we estimate the number of people above 15 years of age who might be included in PC for strongyloidiasis. Based on previous <i>Strongyloides</i> prevalence estimates and on countries' age distribution, we retrieved the number of adults in need of PC. We then subtracted the number of people already involved in ivermectin mass distribution for the elimination of onchocerciasis and lymphatic filariasis and people living in countries where <i>Loa loa</i> is endemic. The number of adults to be involved in PC was estimated from 994.2 (95% confidence interval [95% CI]: 571.6–1292.6), to 562.3 (95% CI: 303.1–790.1) million people, when the strongyloidiasis prevalence threshold for implementing PC was set to 10% and 20%, respectively. Estimates at country level are also provided.These estimates might help endemic countries wishing to implement PC for strongyloidiasis to allocate resources to include adults in addition to SAC in control programmes.This article is part of the theme issue ‘Theo Murphy meeting: Strongyloides: omics to worm-free populations’.

世界卫生组织（World Health Organization, WHO）已启动类圆线虫病（strongyloidiasis）防控指南的制定工作。该指南或建议在达到特定流行阈值的社区层面实施预防性化疗（preventive chemotherapy, PC），即对所有5岁以上人群开展群体性干预。我们此前已估算了需接受预防性化疗的学龄儿童（school-age children, SAC）数量，本文则聚焦类圆线虫病预防性化疗，对15岁以上人群的覆盖规模进行估算。
基于既往类圆线虫属（*Strongyloides*）流行率估算数据及各国年龄结构分布，我们检索得到需接受预防性化疗的成年人数值。随后，我们扣除了已参与伊维菌素大规模分发以消除盘尾丝虫病（onchocerciasis）和淋巴丝虫病（lymphatic filariasis）的人群，以及罗阿丝虫（*Loa loa*）流行国家的居民。
当类圆线虫病预防性化疗的实施流行阈值分别设定为10%和20%时，需纳入预防性化疗的成年人数估算范围从9.942亿（95%置信区间[95% CI]：5.716亿–12.926亿）降至5.623亿（95% CI：3.031亿–7.901亿）。本文同时提供了分国家的估算结果。
上述估算结果可协助有意向针对类圆线虫病实施预防性化疗的流行国家，合理调配资源，在防控计划中除学龄儿童外，将成年人群也纳入覆盖范围。
本文属于主题议题“西奥·墨菲会议：类圆线虫：从组学研究到无蠕虫种群”（*Theo Murphy meeting: Strongyloides: omics to worm-free populations*）的专栏文章。