In the l950s, under the legacy of traditional agriculture, Ascaris lumbricoides, spread epidemically in the war-bitten society of Korea. Consensus on the parasite control was drafted in the Parasite Disease Prevention Act, which passed a parliamentary agreement in 1966, and established safe disposal of feces and mass chemotherapy as control strategies. Biannual stool examinations and treating infected schoolchildren were basic scheme of the control activity through which revenue could be secured for organized business. In the 27 years following 1969, a maximum of 16 million stool examinations had been done every year. Cellophane thick smear enabled the task. The infection declined remarkably in the 1970s when industrialization and green revolution proceeded. A population study of A. lumbricoides in the late 1970s helped us better understand its epidemiology. The data also settled down the understandable protest of teachers against the repeated stool examinations. In the 9 years following 1987, the target population was gradually reduced when the egg positive rate was below 0.1%. An article in the Korean Law, stipulating obligatory stool examinations, was made optional. Although the long-term Korean effort of Ascaris control was a success, the effect of mass chemotherapy was not as succinct in terms of lowering reinfection. In the period of control, Korean agricultural technology changed, and the economy grew and supplied sanitary facilities by which the vicious cycle was disconnected. Reduction of morbidity was a benefit of mass chemotherapy, which is the only control method feasible in economically difficult countries. The most important hurdle of parasite control in the 1960s was poverty of general population and limited financial resources in Korea but the society formed a consensus on the priority of intestinal helminthiasis control during the ordeal period. The national consensus in the 1960s was the critical milestone for Ascaris control in Korea. Under the social agreement, application of timely technical and research advancements in parasitology achieved the success of ascariasis elimination. The successful experience of ascariasis elimination in Korea can be a benchmark for countries where neglected tropical diseases are endemically recycled.

The circumsporozoite protein (CSP) of Plasmodium spp. is a diagnostic antigen and useful biomarker for monitoring short-term/seasonal changes to malaria transmission. Using P. vivax CSP antibody ELISA, epidemiological characteristics were analyzed in the residents of Ganghwa, Cheorwon, Paju, and Goseong from 2017 to 2018. In Ganghwa and Cheorwon, 1.6% and 1.2% of residents, respectively, were PvCSP-antibody-positive in 2018, which indicates a decrease of 0.4% in the positive rate compared to 2017. The annual parasite incidence (API) in Ganghwa and Cheorwon was 24.9 and 10.5 in 2017 and 20.3 and 10.7 in 2018, respectively. Although the changes were not significant, the API in Ganghwa decreased slightly by 4.5 in 2018 compared to the previous year. In Paju and Goseong, 3.9% and 2.0% of residents were positive for the PvCSP antibody. The API in Paju was 13.1 in 2017 and 16.0 in 2018, although no malaria patients were reported for the 2 years. Therefore, the results suggest that PvCSP is a useful antigen for confirming initial malaria infection. Additionally, considering that the antibody is relatively transient, it can be employed for sero-epidemiological studies to determine the extent of malaria transmission in the current year.