Guidance for conducting and evaluating serological surveys to assess interruption of yaws transmission in the context of an eradication target

Abstract

This document provides a summary of guidance developed for national programmes on conducting serosurveys to assess yaws transmission status, with the objective of confirming yaws seroprevalence below 1% at each of three serosurveys over a period of 3-10 years after reporting the last case of active yaws in a region. It proposes active testing of children aged 1-5 years through population-based surveys and includes recommendations on survey design, sample size determination, sampling of primary sampling units (PSUs) within an evaluation unit, sampling of households within PSUs, integration with existing public health surveys, and follow-up protocols for positive results. Geospatial analysis and sustained surveillance are recommended for accurate assessment of whether transmission interruption has been achieved.