🐚 Laos pushes back parasitic disease to below one percent

🐚 Laos pushes back parasitic disease to below one percent

In the worst-affected areas of Laos, the share of people infected with the snail-borne parasitic disease schistosomiasis has dropped to below one percent, down from over 40 percent in some areas in 2003.

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  • In the worst-affected areas of Laos, the share of people infected with the snail-borne parasitic disease schistosomiasis has dropped to below one percent, down from over 40 percent in some areas in 2003.
  • During 2024, over 95,000 people were treated with an annual single dose that clears the parasite from the body and stops transmission.
  • Laos has already eliminated trachoma in 2017 and lymphatic filariasis in 2023, and the goal is now to get rid of schistosomiasis as well.

A disease spread by freshwater snails

Schistosomiasis is caused by a parasite spread through freshwater snails. The parasite's microscopic larvae live in the same water that people use daily, for washing, fishing, and transport. In Laos, the disease has long been a public health problem, especially in communities along the Mekong River. There, the share of infected people exceeded 40 percent in some areas in 2003.

The disease can cause symptoms such as an enlarged liver and bleeding during toilet visits. In severe cases, it leads to serious liver damage with complications that can be fatal.

Remaining in a single province

After decades of efforts, schistosomiasis now remains only in Champasack Province in southern Laos. About 120,000 people in 202 villages are estimated to be at risk. The share of infected people has dropped to below one percent in the high-risk areas, but thousands of people are still affected, above all children.

Treatment, water, and surveillance

The strategy is built on several parts. Mass treatment is carried out in all villages in the affected areas. A single-dose treatment is given each year and clears the parasite from infected people, which both provides relief and prevents continued spread. During 2024, over 95,000 people were treated.

The work also includes better water and sanitation, health education in both villages and schools, and disease surveillance. Experts from China's National Institute of Parasitic Diseases and the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute have strengthened surveillance and laboratory work, which is needed to detect cases and track progress.

Cooperation across borders

The effort is a partnership between the Lao Ministry of Health, the World Health Organization WHO, China's Global Development and South-South Cooperation Fund, and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. China and Switzerland have contributed 1.18 million dollars.

The Lao Ministry of Health is at the same time cooperating with the Cambodian Ministry of Health. They exchange data, lessons, and solutions and are taking on schistosomiasis on both sides of the Mekong.

The progress is built on work from healthcare workers, community leaders, health officials at local, provincial, and national levels, as well as political leaders and development partners. Earlier, the same work removed trachoma in 2017 and lymphatic filariasis in 2023. The number of malaria cases fell to 272 during 2025.

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