The Ghana Health Service (GHS) is stepping up efforts to raise awareness and enhance treatment for Female Genital Schistosomiasis (FGS), a neglected tropical disease affecting a significant portion of the female population.
Dr. Joseph Kwadwo Larbi Opare, the Program Manager for Neglected Tropical Diseases at the Ghana Health Service (GHS), disclosed that FGS prevalence in the country ranges from 10% to 50% among women, while about 1% of men are affected.
This condition can result in severe reproductive health issues, including infertility in women and, albeit less frequently, sterility in men.
Despite its serious consequences, FGS often receives inadequate attention in medical practice. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that nearly 56 million girls and women in sub-Saharan Africa are afflicted by FGS, which can lead to pelvic inflammation, fallopian tube obstruction, and other significant morbidities.
FGS is prevalent in rural areas where women engage in activities such as washing clothes in infested waters. Symptoms of FGS include vaginal bleeding, bleeding during intercourse, genital itching or burning, pelvic pain, and pain during intercourse.
Complications can be severe, ranging from infertility to ectopic pregnancies, miscarriages, involuntary urination, genital ulcers, and tumors. Moreover, FGS increases the risk of acquiring other sexually transmitted diseases.
Dr. Joseph Kwadwo Opare emphasized the necessity for extensive education and awareness campaigns among healthcare workers and the general population.
Efforts are underway to integrate FGS education into daily health activities and training curricula for health professionals, with the aim of improving diagnosis and treatment and ultimately reducing the burden of this neglected tropical disease.
Ghana, like many tropical countries, is not immune to Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs). Of the 20 NTDs identified by the WHO, 14 are prevalent in Ghana, including trachoma, Buruli ulcer, yaws, leprosy, human African trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness), leishmaniases, lymphatic filariasis, river blindness (onchocerciasis), schistosomiasis, and soil-transmitted helminthiases.
“It has been proven that we have a prevalence of 10 to 50% of female genital schistosomiases in Ghana. Ultimately this condition can lead to infertility and the male can also be sterile. For the males it is just about 1% so it is not too many,” said Dr. Opare.
He added “FGS is a silent area in medicine and we are trying to do much education on this so at the national level there is a committee overseeing FGS activities. We are trying to make sure that this education is incorporated into our daily activities among health workers and even non-health workers. In addition, go into the curriculum of many training institutions so that when we get this education when they complete school they can leverage on that and practice how to prevent it”.
Eastern Regional Director of GHS, Dr. Winfred Ofosu, highlighted the identification of hundreds of suspected NTD cases in recent years in the region through collaboration with two NGOs.
However, he noted that stigmatization and misconceptions about the diseases attributed to spiritual causes hinder the fight against them, underscoring the need for involvement of traditional leaders in awareness creation.
Inadequate funding has been identified as a major obstacle to Ghana’s efforts to meet the WHO 2030 NTD roadmap and Sustainable Development Goals 3 target.
Ghana’s NTD Ambassador, Rev. Dr. Joyce Aryee, called for a multisectoral approach to support the fight against NTDs, emphasizing their serious implications for health, food security, education, and the economy.