Challenges and way forward

As, soil-transmitted helminths (STHs) from one of the most important groups of infectious
agents and are the cause of serious global health problems. The global strategy for the control
of soil-transmitted helminthiasis is based on: -

 Regular anthelminthic treatment.

 Health Education.
 Sanitation and personal hygiene.
 Other means of prevention with vaccines and remote sensing.

However, the control of STHs involves several challenges. Some are given below: -

 The proper mobilization of funds required for successful action.

 The expansion of the coverage of regular deworming as public health intervention to approach
the individuals at risk of morbidity caused by STH infections.
 The proper monitoring and evaluation of diagnostic tools.

The following important points should be kept in mind planning a program for control of
helminth infections: -

 Although regular treatment will help all children to avoid the worst effects of infection, long-
term control will be achieved only if regular treatment of at-risk group is accompanied by
improvements in sanitation and hygiene.
 Mapping, screening techniques are used to analyze the initial situation. The diagnostic method
needs to enable accurate information about prevalence and intensity of the infection so that
appropriate interventions can be developed.
 One health Integration System, frequency of screening for zoonotic infections and inclusion of
control for these STH programs depend on the risk. Prevalence of zoonotic parasites in animals
and zoonosis in the human populations can be used to establish a baseline and determine the
risk of zoonotic transmission.