QUESTION What factors cause Africans to get this disease? ANSWER The highest number of malaria cases every year occur in Africa, not because of anything specifically due to the people living there (in fact, they may be better protected against malaria than most—I will come onto this later) but because malaria transmission is very high in many parts of sub-Saharan Africa and … [Read more...]
Malaria Transmission and Deaths in the United States
QUESTION How do you get malaria? How does malaria come to the United States? How many people have died from malaria? ANSWER Malaria is caused by infection with single-celled parasites called Plasmodium. There are five different species which infect humans; of these, Plasmodium falciparum is the most deadly. The Plasmodium parasites are transmitted to humans through the bite of an infected … [Read more...]
Dangerous
QUESTION Why malaria so dangerous? ANSWER Malaria can be dangerous for a number of different reasons, some of which relate to each other. First of all, there are five different types of malaria that infect humans, and each varies in terms of its severity and potential for severe consequences. Even within these types, the severity of the disease caused (termed "virulence" by scientists and … [Read more...]
Do malarial drugs engender joint pains?
QUESTION I am now over 50 and I lived all my life in Africa during which time I have had a considerable incidences of malarial attacks. Each time I took any anti-malarial drug I experienced some side-effects including blurred vision, fatigue and joint pains. The pains especially have since become a permanent part of me and even severe enough to hamper my mobility. Does my condition sound to … [Read more...]
How is Malaria Treated
QUESTION How is malaria treated today? ANSWER Several different medications exist which are used for the treatment of malaria. The exact drug and method of treatment depends somewhat on the type of malaria the patient is infected with. In most cases of non-complicated (i.e. when the patient is stable and conscious) malaria, the World Health Organisation recommends an … [Read more...]
Cure for Malaria
QUESTION Is there a cure for Malaria? ANSWER Yes. Several different medications exist which are used for the treatment of malaria. The exact drug and method of treatment depends somewhat on the type of malaria the patient is infected with. In most cases of non-complicated (i.e. when the patient is stable and conscious) malaria, the World Health Organisation recommends an … [Read more...]
Where is Malaria Found?
QUESTION Where is malaria found? ANSWER Malaria is found throughout the world's tropical and sub-tropical areas, and mainly in Central and South America, Africa, Asia and the Indo-Pacific region. It is most common in tropical regions, where transmission occurs year-round; in sub-tropical and temperate areas, transmission may only occur during seasons that have appropriate climatic … [Read more...]
How Many People Have Died from Malaria?
QUESTION How many people have died from this disease today? (2011) ANSWER Estimates for the number of annual deaths from malaria vary, and are not very accurate since they depend heavily on the quality of reporting. Since the majority of people who die from malaria are in sub-Saharan Africa, and often far from decent health facilities, it can sometimes be difficult to determine whether … [Read more...]
Malaria Prevention
QUESTION what is the prevention of malaria? ANSWER There are many ways in which to prevent malaria. I'll break them down into three categories: 1) medical prevention, 2) protection from getting mosquito bites and 3) vector control. 1) Medical prevention Malaria can be prevented using certain medications. Taking drugs to prevent a disease is known as "chemoprophylaxis", and so these … [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...]