PREVALENCE OF MALARIA AND ASSOCIATED RISK FACTORS AMONG PATIENTS VISITING MEKI HEALTH CENTER, DUGDA DISTRICT, EAST SHOA ZONE, OROMIA REGIONAL STATE, ETHIOPIA

Thus, the objectives of the present study were to determine the current prevalence of malaria, to determine the predominant Plasmodium species, and to assess the major factors that are associated with the prevalence of malaria among patientsin Meki Health Center, Dugda District, East Shoa Zone, Oromia Regional State, Ethiopia. A hospital -based cross-sectional study was conducted at Meki Health Center, during January to March 2022.A pretested and structured questionnaire survey was carried out to obtain the socio-demographic and other explanatory variables among the study participants. A total 404 study participants who were selected using a simple random sampling technique were participated in the questionnaire survey and blood samples collections.For each study participant both thin and thick blood smears were prepared for microscopic diagnosis of malaria... In addition, clinical records of malaria were used to analyses the trends of malaria over the past five years (2017- 2022).Prevalence of malaria was calculated using descriptive statistics.. Those significant variables by bivariate regression were selected for multivariate logistic regression analysis using a backward elimination method to avoid the cofounding effect,from a total of 404 blood samples examined, 12 (3%) samples were found positive for malaria infection.Of these, the prevalence of P. vivax and P. falciparum infection was 2% and 1%, respectively. Of the confirmed malaria cases, 66.7% and 33.3% were P. vivax andP. Falciparuminfection, respectively.Thus, P. vivax was the dominant malaria parasites among the study participants; andthe prevalence of malaria in males wasgreater thanthat of in females. The results showed that 25.5%of the study participants had ITNs; and the study participants’ knowledge about sign and symptoms of malaria were high. Results of the multivariate analyses showed that factors like use bed net; location of house near to the breading site of the malaria vector; family size; and house type were identified as associated risk factors for malaria infection in the present study area.. It is recommended that further efforts are needed with regard to the health care provisions and awareness creation for proper utilization of ITNs as well as avoiding the misconceptions in the community about malaria causes; itsmodes of transmission and clinical manifestations; by health extension workers through community participatory practices as a main strategy