Potential use of antibodies to provide an earlier indication of lymphatic filariasis resurgence in post-mass drug ad ministration surveillance in American Samoa

Background: Under the Global Programme to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis (LF), American Samoa conducted 7 rounds of mass drug administration (MDA) between 20 0 0 and 20 06. The territory passed transmission assessment surveys (TASs) in 2011 (TAS-1) and 2015 (TAS-2). In 2016, the territory failed TAS-3, indicating resurgence. This study aims to determine if antibodies (Abs) may have provided a timelier indication of LF resurgence in American Samoa. Methods: We examined school-level antigen (Ag) and Ab status (presence/absence of Ag-and Ab-positive children) and prevalence of single and combined Ab responses to Wb123, Bm14, and Bm33 Ags at each TAS. Pearson chi-square test and logistic regression were used to examine associations between school level Ab prevalence in TAS-1 and TAS-2 and school-level Ag status in TAS-3. Results: Schools with higher prevalence of Wb123 Ab in TAS-2 had higher odds of being Ag-positive in TAS-3 (odds ratio [OR] 24.5, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.2-512.7). Schools that were Ab-positive for WB123 plus Bm14, Bm33, or both Bm14 and Bm33 in TAS-2 had higher odds of being Ag-positive in TAS-3 (OR 16.0-24.5). Conclusion: Abs could provide earlier signals of resurgence and enable a timelier response. The promising role of Abs in surveillance after MDA and decision making should be further investigated in other settings. (c) 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of International Society for Infectious Diseases. This is an open access article under the CC BY license ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ )

Automated summary

This study aims to determine if antibodies (Abs) may have provided a timelier indication of LF resurgence in American Samoa. The study found that schools with higher prevalence of specific antibodies were more likely to be antigen-positive in subsequent surveys. Therefore, antibodies could potentially provide earlier signals of resurgence and enable a timelier response.