Cause amoebic and bacillary dysentery, typhoid, and cholera. They have been

These filters have been shown to effectively remove up to 90 of viruses, > 99.9 of protozoa and helminthes, 90?8.5 fnins.2015.00094 of Escherichia coli, and up to 85 of turbidity.4?,9,10 However, although BSFs use simple Mequitazine side effects technology that has been proven appropriate for many developing countries, few field studies have evaluated how effective and sustainable they are beyond six years.11?3 As a result, there is currently little empirical evidence that BSF technology is effective and sustainable in the long term. In 2005, Duke and others6 conducted one of the first longterm field studies of cement BSFs in the Artibonite Valley,Haiti. During February arch 2005, 107 households with BSFs were evaluated. The filters ranged in age from one to five years and were part of a large-scale distribution of more ^ than 2,000 filters in the region by a local hospital, Hopital Albert Schweitzer (HAS), starting in 1999 through 2005. Overall, the BSFs they tested averaged 98.5 removal efficiency of E. coli and 85 reduction in turbidity. Since 2005, additional BSFs have been distributed throughout the Artibonite Valley by HAS and other non-governmental organizations (NGOs). We studied a non-randomized sample of 55 concrete BSFs distributed in the Artibonite Valley, near Deschapelles, Haiti, since 1999 to evaluate their sustained use and effectiveness. Our primary research goals were to determine BSF efficacy through water quality analysis and document BSF sustainability in the region through informal surveys and a novel statistical analysis. This study presents efficacy data for filters still in use up to 12 years. METHODS Performance data were collected from non-randomized sampling of homes located throughout the Artibonite Valley near Deschapelles, during March 2011 under Institutional Review Board protocol no. 174200. Our study area extended from Liancourt up the valley to La Chapelles (02699931.2015.1049516 in numerous laboratory and field studies to assess effectiveness and sustainability,6,7,9 in which sustainability refers to the length of time a filter is likely to remain in use when adequately maintained.