1960s – 1970s
“Snail fever,” also known as schistosomiasis or bilharzia, is a disease caused by parasitic worms that live in Oncomelania snails. The disease is the most devastating parasitic disease worldwide behind malaria. In China, “snail fever” is most prevalent along and south of the Yangtze River. The “snail belt” spans eleven provinces and one city (Shanghai). “Snail fever” tends to occur in environments with poor hygienic practices.
In the early 1950s, Chairman Mao launched a national campaign aimed at containing and eliminating “snail fever.” By 1955, there was widespread mass mobilization of Chinese people to capture and eliminate Oncomelania snails. Even with the efforts to capture the snails, the epidemic was not contained until the CCP launched effective agricultural and water conservation projects in rural China.
