SMV Delivery

Duración

01/10/2024 - 01/04/2028

Coordinador

Cristina Enguita-Fernàndez

Financiadores

EDCTP3

Seasonal malaria chemoprevention (SMC) — the administration of sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine and amodiaquine (SP +AQ) — during the peak period of malaria risk has proved to be a highly effective malaria control measure in areas where transmission of malaria is highly seasonal. SMC was administered to 45 million children in 2021. Still, malaria remains the main cause of hospital admissions among young children in many parts of the Sahel and sub-Sahel and additional control measures are needed to protect children.

The malaria vaccines RTS,S/AS01E, and R21/Matrix provide a high level of protection during the first few months after a primary series of vaccination, or after a booster dose, but efficacy wanes progressively during the following months and years. Thus, in areas with seasonal malaria transmission, one potential use for these vaccines, which provide a high but relatively short period of protection, is administration of an annual booster dose given prior to the malaria transmission season in children who have received three priming doses of the vaccine in the first year of life. However, there is a debate about the best approach to delivery of the booster doses.

The main objective of this study is to determine whether annual booster doses of the malaria vaccines administered pre-transmission season through a mass campaign will achieve better coverage and higher impact on the incidence of malaria than pre-transmission booster doses delivered by an EPI programme at vaccination centres.

This will be a pragmatic implementation study involving two cohorts of children. Two districts that have comparable malaria epidemiology, social structure, coverage of EPI vaccines, and access to treatment will be identified in both Mali and in Guinea from the list of districts that are selected for roll out of R21M vaccine by the Ministry of Health. The study will compare different delivery strategies — season-based vs. age-based approaches and mass community campaigns vs. health facility-based distribution — to determine the most effective method. Within this project, the MCRH program at ISGlobal is leading the social and implementation sciences work package.

Total Funding

4.352.355€