QUESTION I am right now recuperating from a third attack in less than one year's time. What could have gone wrong ? I am awaiting to hear your advice. ANSWER There are a number of reasons for multiple malaria attacks. One is that although malaria can be easily treated, these treatments often don't prevent re-infection. There are separate drugs which can be used to prevent malaria … [Read more...]
Medicines to Prevent Malaria?
QUESTION Which medicines are used to prevent malaria? ANSWER There are a number of drugs used to prevent malaria infection, known as malaria prophylactic medication. These vary in terms of how they are taken, how long they are taken for, how much they cost and the typical side effects people experience while they are taking them. In addition, some are recommended more highly for certain … [Read more...]
What is Malaria?
QUESTION What is malaria? ANSWER Malaria is a disease caused by parasites of the genus Plasmodium. Transmitted by mosquitoes, there are several different kinds of malaria distributed throughout the tropical and sub-tropical regions of the world, causing somewhere between 300-500 million cases of disease each year, and as many as 1 million deaths. In fact, malaria is one of the biggest … [Read more...]
Malaria Prevention and Hormones
QUESTION Is there any chance of opposing the malarial infection by hormones? If yes,then how is that done? ANSWER Malaria incidence is roughly equal between males and females, so it is not believed that sex hormones have any influence of infection rates. However, the progress of infection with respect to hormones has not been extensively studied. It is unlikely that hormonal supplements … [Read more...]
How to Prevent Malaria
QUESTION How to prevent malaria? ANSWER Despite its wide geographic range and potentially severe consequences, there are actually several effective strategies for controlling malaria, many of which have been successful of reducing the burden of the disease, and especially the number of deaths, in various regions. The first step towards control is prevention. This has largely been … [Read more...]
What can I do to help?
QUESTION: What is there I can do to help them? ANSWER: Thank you for your concern! Probably the easiest and most direct way you can support the people suffering from malaria infections, especially in the developing world, is by helping to spread awareness about the impact of the disease and how it affects millions of people worldwide. To help with these campaigns, you can also donate … [Read more...]
Malaria prophylaxis
QUESTION: What name brand medicine should you take if you are traveling to area where malaria is present? ANSWER: That depends on a few factors, such as where exactly you are going, whether you have had bad experiences with any malaria preventative drugs (prophylactics) in the past, and how much money you want to spend! Common brand names of malaria prophylactic drugs include Lariam … [Read more...]
Will malaria come back?
QUESTION: As a result of a blood test I have just been informed that at some time I have had malaria. Though I have no idea when this was. I once was ill for 4 days with what I thought was flu and that is the only occasion I can remember. Therefore I have never been treated for malaria. Could you please tell me if there is any chance the disease will come back. ANSWER: That will … [Read more...]
Cases of Malaria
QUESTION: What are reasons for the increasing number of cases of malaria? ANSWER: As I recently wrote in answer to another Q&A post, it is difficult to determine whether cases of malaria are indeed increasing or not. For one, a large number of cases are not reported every year, making accurate estimates difficult. Secondly, the world's population is growing, and it is growing at the … [Read more...]
What does malaria cause?
QUESTION: What does malaria cause? ANSWER: Malaria is a disease. It is caused by tiny single-celled parasites called Plasmodium, which are transmitted through the bite of infected Anopheles mosquitoes. There are many symptoms that occur as a result of infection with malaria, namely fever, chills, headaches and nausea, among others. Malaria can be a very serious disease, especially if not … [Read more...]