Project by professor Jakob B. Knudsen. M. Jawara, E. Jatta, A. Matty, B. Kandeh, T. Burkot, V. Hunt, C. Jones, M. Pinder, S. Stone, S.W. Lindsay.
A pilot field trial of doors and windows designed to keep out mosquitos from houses while also providing security, indoor comfort, and privacy. The effort aims to reduce the indoor transmission of vector-borne diseases such as malaria by excluding mosquitos from homes.
Nearly half of the world’s population is at risk of malaria. In 2015, there were roughly 212 million malaria cases and an estimated 429,000 deaths attributable to malaria. Since 80–100% of the malaria transmitted in Africa occurs indoors, house design is likely to affect malaria mortality rates.
The door design features bent panels with vented slots to prevent mosquitos from entering, while allowing increased comfort by enabling greater ventilation than traditional solid doors. The bent-panel design increases strength while appearing solid, thereby providing both security and privacy.
