Table 1 Summary of the three methods used to measure the physical condition of LLINs in this study

WHOPES

Field surveyors count the number of holes in each of four categories:

1. Less than thumb-sized but greater than 0.5 cm (0.5 < diameter ≤ 2.0 cm)

2. Larger than a thumb but smaller than a fist (2.0 < diameter ≤ 10.0 cm),

3. Larger than a fist but smaller than a head (10.0 < diameter ≤ 25.0 cm)

4. Head-sized or larger (diameter > 25.0 cm)

Each hole was assigned the midpoint area of the hole size category according to the guidelines:

1.2 cm²

28.3 cm²

240.5 cm²

706.9 cm²

Note: no additional weighting was done

Image analysis

ImageJ software processed digital images of each LLIN side to extract statistical data about shapes and edges, object counts, area, and location

Analyse particles tool yielded area measurements in cm² (calibrated from square pixels representing the holes)

Ruler

The length, width, and location (distance from the center of the hole to the bottom and side of the net noted as x and y coordinates) were measured using a tape measure (in mm)

The measured length and width were converted to area using the formula for the area of an ellipse calculated as A = π × a × b where a is ½ the length of the major axis and b is ½ the length of the minor axis