25 April is the World Malaria Day, instituted by the World Health Assembly at its 60th session in May 2007, as a day for recognising the global effort to provide effective control of malaria. It provides an opportunity for:
- countries in the affected regions to learn from each other's experiences and support each other's efforts;
- new donors to join a global partnership against malaria;
- research and academic institutions to flag their scientific advances to both experts and general public
Facts about malaria
- About 3.3 billion people - half of the world's population - are at risk of malaria.
- Every year, there are nearly 250 million cases and one million deaths due to malaria.
- People living in the developing countries are the most vulnerable.
- Malaria is especially a serious problem in Africa, where one in every five (20%) childhood deaths is due to the effects of the disease.
- An African child has on average between 1.6 and 5.4 episodes of malaria fever every year.
- Every 30 seconds a child dies from malaria.
Malaria PreventionMalaria is a preventable and treatable disease but sadly it kills around a million people globally. The third World Malaria Day is set to fulfil the goals set by the ongoing Roll Back Malaria Partnership campaign 'Counting Malaria Out', which aims to intensify global efforts to reach important milestones set by the Global Malaria Action Plan (GMAP). Prevention of malaria aims at either:
- preventing infection, by avoiding bites by parasite-carrying mosquitoes, or
- preventing the disease, by using anti-malarial drugs. The drugs do not prevent initial infection through a mosquito bite, but they prevent the development of malaria parasites in the blood, which are the forms that cause disease. This type of prevention is also called suppression.
Prevention is an important component of malaria control in endemic countries. It can be achieved through:
- vector control
- personal protection measures such as insecticide-treated bed nets.
- preventive treatment with anti-malarial drugs of vulnerable groups such as pregnant women, who receive intermittent preventive treatment.
The goal of malaria control in malaria-endemic countries is to reduce as much as possible the health impact of malaria on a population, using the resources available, and taking into account other health priorities. Malaria control does not aim to eliminate malaria totally. Complete elimination of the malaria parasite (and thus the disease) would constitute eradication. While eradication is more desirable, it is not currently a realistic goal for most of the countries where malaria is endemic. The main activities necessary for carrying out malaria control interventions are:
- Health education where the masses are informed of what they can do to prevent and treat malaria.
- Training and supervision of health workers, to ensure that they carry out their tasks correctly.
- Provision of equipment and supplies (e.g., microscopes, drugs, bed nets) to allow the health workers and the communities to carry out the interventions.
Barriers to malaria control
Malaria control is made difficult by several technical and administrative problems. Some of these are listed below:
- Drug-resistant malaria parasites hinder case management by decreasing the efficacy of anti-malarial drugs and by requiring the use of alternate drugs that are often more costly, less safe and less easy to administer.
- Insecticide resistance decreases the efficacy of interventions that rely on insecticides such as insecticide-treated bed nets and insecticide spraying.
- Inadequate health infrastructures in developing countries are unable to conduct the recommended interventions.
- The people most exposed to malaria are often below the poverty line and lack education. They often do not know how to prevent or treat malaria. Even when they do know, they often do not have the financial means to purchase the necessary products, such as drugs or bed nets.
(Adapted from WHO and CDC)