Socioeconomic impacts of leishmaniases on households of Marigat Sub county, Baringo County of Kenya

Abstract

The global burden of leishmaniases has remained stable for some years, causing a morbidity and mortality mainly to the poor proportion of the population. An estimated 5 million people are at risk of infection in Kenya with 4,000 cases occurring annually. Despite these prevailing statistics, the socioeconomic costs to the leishmaniases are not known. A cross-sectional study, which employed administration of structured questionnaires, was carried out in Marigat Sub County of Baringo County in 2015. Household heads were randomly selected whereas participants of focused group discussions (FGDs) were selected by purposive sampling. Data was analyzed by Chi-square test using SPSS version 20 software. The study recruited 390 respondents, 53% and 48% females and males respectively. The majority (29%) of respondents were illiterate. Whereas 44% had normal monthly expenditure of US$ 10.01-50, the mean total expenditure due to visceral leishmaniasis (VL) was US$ 259.83 per household with 50.26% using over US$ 200.The mean number of economic days lost was 178 days. 9.1% of the respondents reported isolation of VL patients. The cost of treating a patient with VL was way above the monthly expenditure of residents resulting in sinking the affected families in poverty. Days lost in the course of patient treatment of leishmaniasis could be used to improve livelihoods. There is need for interventions to increase access to affordable leishmaniases prevention, diagnosis and treatment. Poverty alleviation programmes should also be increased in Marigat Sub County and neighboring communities.