The Camino Verde trial of community mobilisation for control of dengue reported a significant impact on entomological indices of the Aedes aegypti vector , and on serological dengue virus infection and self-reported dengue cases .
One reason for doing r and omised controlled trials ( RCTs ) is that experiments can be convincing .
Early epidemiological experimenters , such as Jenner and the smallpox vaccine and Snow and his famous Broad Street pump h and le , already knew the answer they were demonstrating ; they used the experiments as knowledge translation devices to convince others .
More sophisticated modern experiments include cluster r and omised controlled trials ( C RCTs ) for experiments in the public health setting .
Those who are convinced by a trial and want to act , need to know how the trial relates to their own context , what contributed to success , and what might make it even more effective .
Coverage and beliefs about temephos application for control of dengue vectors and impact of a community-based prevention intervention: secondary analysis from the Camino Verde trial in Mexico
Background Temephos in domestic water containers remains a mainstay of Latin American government programmes for control of Aedes aegypti and associated illnesses , including dengue . There is little published evidence about coverage of routine temephos programmes . A cluster r and omised controlled trial of community mobilisation in Mexico and Nicaragua reduced vector indices , dengue infection , and clinical dengue cases . Secondary analysis from the Mexican arm of the trial examined temephos coverage and beliefs , and the impact of the trial on these outcomes . Methods The trial impact survey in December 2012 , in 10,491 households in 45 intervention and 45 control clusters , asked about visits from the temephos programme , retention of applied temephos , and views about temephos and mosquito control . Fieldworkers noted if temephos was present in water containers . Results Some 42.4 % of rural and 20.7 % of urban households reported no temephos programme visits within the last 12 months . Overall , 42.0 % reported they had  temephos placed in their water containers less than 3 months previously . Fieldworkers observed  temephos  in at least one container in 21.1 % of households . Recent temephos application and observed temephos  were both significantly more common in urban households , when other household variables were taken into account ; in rural areas , smaller households were more likely to have temephos present . Most households ( 74.4 % ) did not think bathing with water containing temephos carried any health risk . Half ( 51 % ) believed drinking or cooking with such water could be harmful and 17.6 % were unsure . Significantly fewer households in intervention sites ( 16.5 % ) than in control sites ( 26.0 % ) ( Risk Difference − 0.095 , 95 % confidence interval − 0.182 to −0.009 ) had temephos observed in their water ; more households in intervention clusters ( 41.8 % ) than in control clusters ( 31.6 % ) removed the applied  temephos  quickly . Although fewer households in intervention sites ( 82.7 % ) compared with control sites ( 86.7 % ) ( RD -0.04 , 95 % CI -0.067 to −0.013 ) agreed temephos and fumigation was the best way to avoid mosquitoes , the proportion believing this remained very high . Conclusion Coverage with the government temephos programme was low , especially in rural areas . Despite an intervention encouraging non-chemical mosquito control , most households continued to believe that chemicals are the best control method .Trial registration IS RCT N:27581154
The Camino Verde trial of community mobilisation for control of dengue reported a significant impact on entomological indices of the Aedes aegypti vector , and on serological dengue virus infection and self-reported dengue cases .
One reason for doing r and omised controlled trials ( RCTs ) is that experiments can be convincing .
Early epidemiological experimenters , such as Jenner and the smallpox vaccine and Snow and his famous Broad Street pump h and le , already knew the answer they were demonstrating ; they used the experiments as knowledge translation devices to convince others .
More sophisticated modern experiments include cluster r and omised controlled trials ( C RCTs ) for experiments in the public health setting .
Those who are convinced by a trial and want to act , need to know how the trial relates to their own context , what contributed to success , and what might make it even more effective .