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Scabies causes considerable morbidity in disadvantaged populations. However, these criteria are complex, and a WHO informal consultation proposed simplified criteria for mapping, to identify regions of high prevalence as targets for mass drug administration.
We aimed to investigate the accuracy of simplified criteria in determining scabies prevalence, compared to the IACS criteria. We calculated prevalence using the IACS criteria and simplified criteria and compared these disease estimates. There was no significant difference in the pooled prevalence using the two methods IACS criteria: In Timor-Leste, the prevalence using simplified criteria was lower Simplified criteria had a sensitivity of The scabies prevalence estimation using simplified criteria was similar to using the IACS criteria in high prevalence, tropical countries.
The prevalence estimation was lower in the school-based survey in Timor-Leste. Mapping using simplified criteria may be a feasible and effective public health tool to identify priority regions for scabies control. Further work assessing use of simplified criteria for mapping in a field setting should be conducted.
