• About Us
  • Board of Advisors
  • Contact

MALARIA.com

A Malaria Information and Community Portal

  • Home
  • Malaria Overview
  • Malaria Research
  • News
  • Videos
  • Blogs
  • Malaria Q&A
  • Events
  • Jobs
Home / Malaria Q&A / How do you get malaria?

How do you get malaria?

June 8, 2011 By Malaria Q&A 3 Comments

QUESTION:

How do you get malaria?

ANSWER:

Malaria is caused by parasites called Plasmodium, of which different species cause different types of malaria. A person gets malaria when they are bitten by certain female mosquitoes (of the species Anopheles) that carry Plasmodium parasites in their saliva. The mosquitoes themselves pick up the parasite by feeding on the blood of people already infected with malaria.

Once a person has been bitten by an infected mosquito, the parasites are released into their bloodstream. Inside the body, they reproduce and multiply—different types of malaria have different lengths of reproductive cycle and different locations in the body where the life stages reside. It is the process of reproduction and movement through the body that causes the fever, chills and other symptoms that are associated with a malaria infection.

Filed Under: Malaria Q&A Tagged With: causes of malaria, Malaria life cycle, Malaria Symptoms, Plasmodium

Comments

  1. ben says

    August 31, 2012 at 2:02 am

    malaria is a sad thing i hope all the people who have got it gets better and this is an awsome website

    Log in to Reply
  2. zanib says

    September 4, 2012 at 12:12 pm

    Can you get malaria from the saliva of another human or pet/animal

    Log in to Reply
    • Judith Standley says

      September 5, 2012 at 5:39 am

      Hi Zanib,
      Malaria is contracted by the bit of an mosquito infected with the malaria parasite. You cannot get it from saliva.

      Log in to Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Stay Informed

WWARN Corner

About WWARN

The WorldWide Antimalarial Resistance Network (WWARN) generates innovative resources and reliable evidence to inform the malaria community on the factors affecting the efficacy of antimalarial medicines. Learn more…

  • Fighting Malaria Requires Protecting the Effectiveness of Antimalarial Medicines
  • Data Sharing at IDDO
  • Evidence to inform equitable dosing in very young and malnourished children

More WWARN Stories...

  • Home
  • Malaria Overview
  • Malaria Research
  • News
  • Videos
  • Blogs
  • Malaria Q&A
  • Events
  • Jobs
  • About Us
  • Board of Advisors
  • Contact

Copyright © 2023 Malaria.com ยท Log in