Introduction
malaria
MALARIA
Since the year 2000, gains in malaria control in sub-Saharan Africa have been largely attributed to widespread indoor vector control with long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs) and to a smaller extent with indoor-residual spraying (IRS)The concept of ‘push–pull’ in which the behaviour of insect pests is manipulated to drive them away from a host that should be protected (‘push’) and lure them towards an alternative attractive host or trap (‘pull’) has been well demonstrated in agricultural systemsRecent studies under semi-field conditions in Kenya and Tanzania have shown that the use of passively emanated transfluthrin spatial repellents from fabric strips suspended around open eave gaps of houses can reduce human landing rates of The impact of the combination of the two strategies, on reducing human biting rates has, so far, mainly been evaluated under standardized semi-field conditions in large enclosures with insectary-reared We implemented a randomized, double-blind placebo-control study in a rural irrigated rice agroecosystem in western Kenya, to investigate to what degree a push–pull strategy can protect people from potentially infectious mosquito bites inside the house and in the immediate surrounding outside the house (peri-domestic space) under real life conditions. The ‘push’ was provided by transfluthrin-treated fabric strips around eave gaps, and the ‘pull’ was provided by a Suna-trapIn this study outdoor vector-human contact was measured with human landing catches (HLCs)