Control of parasitic diseases in China Current status and prospects

The prevalence of parasitic infectious, which are generally associated with warm climates, rurality, poverty and ignorance, has been one of the predominant problems of public health. With the commitment of the Government and the progress of modern sciences, national control programs were established in the early 1950s, but for only four diseases most hazardous to humans, i.e. schistosomiasis, malaria, filariasis and visceral leishmaniasis (kala azar) due to the limitation of financial and technical resources.