List three major public health interventions to reduce Schistosoma mansoni transmission.

• A. Sanitation improvements, snail control, mass drug administration with praziquantel; health education
• B. Antibiotic prophylaxis for all schoolchildren, vaccination, vector control
• C. Isolation of infected individuals, quarantine, random testing
• D. Import of safe seafood, diet modification, physical activity programs

Answer: (A)

Schistosoma mansoni transmission depends on contact with water containing larvae released by infected snails, so reducing transmission focuses on breaking the parasite’s life cycle at multiple points. Sanitation improvements stop human waste from getting into water bodies, which cuts the release of eggs that would hatch into infectious larvae. Snail control lowers the population of the intermediate hosts needed for the parasite to develop and reach humans. Mass drug administration with praziquantel lowers the number of adult worms in people, reducing both illness and the amount of eggs entering the environment, which helps interrupt ongoing transmission. Health education supports all these efforts by teaching communities how transmission occurs, promoting safer water use and sanitation, and encouraging participation in treatment programs. The other options don’t fit because vaccination or routine antibiotic prophylaxis for schistosomiasis isn’t standard, isolation or quarantine isn’t a practical strategy, and measures like safe seafood or general fitness don’t address the parasite’s transmission cycle.