Malaria

27 May 2024
شركة لارا السعودية

Key facts

  • It is estimated that 249 million malaria infections and 608,000 deaths will occur in 85 countries around the world in 2022.
  • The WHO African Region bears a disproportionately large share of the global malaria burden. In 2022, 94% of malaria cases (233 million cases) and 95% of malaria deaths (580,000 deaths) were recorded in this region. Children under five years of age represented about 80% of all malaria deaths in the region.


Overview

Malaria is a life-threatening disease transmitted to humans by some species of mosquitoes. Malaria is spread mainly in tropical countries and can be prevented and cured.

Symptoms of the disease can be mild or life-threatening. Mild symptoms are fever, chills, and headache. Severe symptoms include fatigue, confusion, seizures, and difficulty breathing.

Infants, children under five years of age, pregnant women, travelers, and those infected with HIV/AIDS are at greater risk of developing severe malaria infection.

Malaria can be prevented by avoiding mosquito bites and taking medications. Treatments can also prevent mild cases from getting worse.

Malaria is primarily transmitted to humans through the bites of some species of infected female Anopheles mosquitoes. It may also be transmitted through blood transfusion and the use of contaminated needles. The first symptoms of the disease may be mild and similar to the symptoms of several febrile illnesses and are difficult to attribute to malaria. If malaria caused by Plasmodium falciparum is not treated, it can become severely ill and cause death within 24 hours.

There are 5 types of parasites from the Plasmodium family that cause malaria in humans, of which two types pose the greatest danger: Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax. Plasmodium falciparum is the most deadly and most widespread type of parasite that causes malaria on the African continent. Plasmodium vivax is the type of parasite that causes malaria that is prevalent in most countries outside sub-Saharan Africa. Other types of parasites that cause malaria and can infect humans are Plasmodium viii, Plasmodium ovale, and Plasmodium knowlesi.


Symptoms

The most common first symptoms of malaria are fever, headache, and shivering.

Symptoms usually begin 10 to 15 days after being bitten by an infected mosquito.

These symptoms may be mild in some people, especially in those who have previously been infected with malaria. It is important to get tested for malaria early because some symptoms of this disease are not specific.

Some types of malaria can cause severe illness and death. Infants, children under five years of age, pregnant women, travelers, and those infected with HIV/AIDS are at greater risk of infection. Severe symptoms include:

  • Extreme exhaustion and fatigue
  • Impaired consciousness
  • Multiple seizures
  • Breathing difficulty
  • Dark or bloody urine
  • Jaundice (yellowing of the eyes and skin)
  • Abnormal bleeding

People who develop severe symptoms should get emergency care immediately. Getting early treatment for mild malaria can prevent the infection from getting worse.

Malaria infection during pregnancy can also cause premature birth or low birth weight.


Burden of disease

According to the latest World Malaria Report , the number of malaria cases reached 249 million in 2022 compared to a total of 244 million cases in 2021. The estimated number of malaria deaths was 608,000 in 2022 Compared to a total of 610,000 deaths in 2021.

The WHO African Region continues to bear a disproportionately large share of the global malaria burden, with nearly 94% of all malaria cases and 95% of deaths resulting from it recorded in 2022. Children under the age of five represented about 78% of all malaria deaths in the region.

Just over half of the world's total malaria deaths were recorded in four African countries: Nigeria (26.8%), Democratic Republic of the Congo (12.3%), Uganda (5.1%) and Mozambique (4.2%) .


Malaria prevention

Malaria can be prevented by avoiding mosquito bites or taking medications. Travelers heading to areas where malaria is common should consult a doctor before traveling about taking medications such as chemoprophylaxis.

The risk of malaria can be reduced by avoiding mosquito bites as follows:

  • Use mosquito nets when sleeping in places where malaria is present
  • Use mosquito repellents (containing diethyltoluamide, IR3535, or Icaridin) after dusk
  • Use of coils and vaporizers
  • Wear protective clothing
  • Use window coverings

Vector control

Vector control is a vital component of malaria control and elimination strategies because vector control is highly effective in preventing infection and reducing disease transmission. The two main interventions in this area are the use of insecticide-treated mosquito nets and topical spraying of indoor spaces.

The emergence of insecticide resistance in Anopheles mosquitoes threatens progress made in controlling malaria globally. As described in the latest World Malaria Report , other threats to the use of insecticide-treated bed nets include insufficient availability of bed nets, loss of bed nets due to the pressure of daily life that outpaces their replacement, and changing behavior of mosquitoes, which appear to bite earlier before they go. Encourages people to go to bed and rest outdoors, avoiding exposure to pesticides.


Chemical prevention

Travelers heading to malaria-endemic areas should consult a doctor several weeks before departure. The doctor will determine the appropriate chemoprevention medications according to the destination country. In some cases, chemoprophylaxis should be started two or three weeks before departure. All preventive medications should be taken on schedule throughout the stay in the malaria risk area and continued within 4 weeks after the last possible exposure to infection because parasites may continue to emerge from the liver during this period.


Preventive chemical treatment

Prophylactic chemotherapy is the use of drugs either alone or in combination to prevent malaria infections and their consequences. This treatment requires the administration of full antimalarial treatment to vulnerable population groups at specific points of time during the period when these groups are most at risk of malaria, regardless of whether the people receiving treatment are infected with malaria.

Prophylactic chemotherapy includes prophylactic chemotherapy for persistent malaria, prophylactic chemotherapy for seasonal malaria, intermittent antimalarial prophylaxis during pregnancy and in schoolchildren, prophylactic antimalarial chemotherapy after discharge from hospital, and drug administration on a group basis. These safe and cost-effective strategies are intended to complement ongoing malaria control activities, including vector control measures, rapid diagnosis of suspected malaria cases and treatment of confirmed cases with antimalarial drugs.


the vaccine

Questions and answers regarding the RTS,S vaccine


Malaria treatment

Early diagnosis and treatment of malaria contributes to alleviating its severity, preventing deaths resulting from it, and limiting its transmission. WHO recommends that all suspected malaria cases be confirmed using diagnostic tests based on identifying the species of parasites (by microscopic examination or rapid diagnostic test).

Malaria infection is serious and almost always requires treatment with medication.

Multiple medications are used to prevent and treat malaria. Doctors will choose one or more of these medications based on the following:

  • Malaria pattern
  • Whether the parasites causing malaria are resistant to the drug
  • The weight or age of the person infected with malaria
  • Whether the person with the disease is a pregnant woman

These are the most common medications to treat malaria:

  • Artemisinin combination therapy is the most effective treatment against malaria caused by Plasmodium falciparum.
  • Chloroquine is not recommended for the treatment of P. vivax infections except where treatment remains responsive to P. vivax.
  • Primaquine should be added to mainline treatment to prevent recurrence of P. vivax and P. ovale infection.

Most of the medications used are given in pill form. Some people may have to go to a health center or hospital to be given medications by injection.


Resistance to antimalarial drugs

Partial resistance to artemisinin has emerged as a threat to global malaria control efforts in the Greater Mekong subregion over the past decade. The Organization is deeply concerned by reports of partial resistance to artemisinin in Africa, confirmed in Eritrea, Rwanda, Uganda and, more recently, Tanzania. Regular monitoring of the efficacy of antimalarial drugs is needed to guide malaria treatment policies in endemic countries and ensure early detection and response to drug resistance.

For more information on WHO's work on antimalarial drug resistance in the Greater Mekong Subregion, please see the Mekong Malaria Elimination Program webpage. The organization has also developed a strategy to address drug resistance in Africa .


Eliminate malaria

Malaria eradication is defined as the interruption of local transmission of a specific type of malaria parasite in a specific geographical area as a result of activities to control it. Measures to prevent re-transmission of the disease must continue.

The number of countries that reported fewer than 1,000 indigenous cases of malaria was 34 in 2022 and was limited to 13 in 2000. Countries that have not recorded any indigenous cases of malaria for at least 3 consecutive years are eligible to apply for certification WHO aims to eliminate malaria . Since 2015, 12 countries have been certified as malaria-free by the WHO Director-General, including the Maldives (2015), Sri Lanka (2016), Kyrgyzstan (2016), Paraguay (2018), Uzbekistan (2018), Argentina (2019), Algeria (2019) and China ( 2021), El Salvador (2021), Azerbaijan (2023), Tajikistan (2023) and Belize (2023).

Countries and territories certified by WHO as malaria-free .


Malaria surveillance

Malaria surveillance is the continuous and systematic collection, analysis and interpretation of malaria-related data, and the use of those data to plan, implement and evaluate public health practices. Improved surveillance of malaria cases and deaths helps ministries of health identify areas or population groups most affected and enables countries to monitor changing disease patterns. Robust malaria surveillance systems also help countries design effective health interventions and evaluate the impact of their malaria control programmes.