What is Malaria?
Malaria is caused by a parasite called plasmodium, It is transmitted via the bites of infected mosquitoes. The parasites multiply in the liver, in the human body and then infect red blood cells.
Fever, headache, and vomiting are the symptoms of malaria. These symptoms usually appear between 10 and 15 days after the mosquito bite. Malaria can quickly become life-threatening by disrupting the blood supply to vital organs, if not treated. The parasites have developed resistance to a number of malaria medicines, in many parts of the world.
Key interventions to control malaria include:
- quick and effective treatment with artemisinin-based combination therapies;
- use of insecticidal nets by people at risk
- indoor residual spraying with insecticide to control the vector mosquitoes.
World Malaria Day - 25 April 2010
Who is at risk of malaria? It is approximately half of the world's population. Particularly those living in lower-income countries are more at risk of malaria. More than 500 million people per year are infected by malaria and it kills more than 1 million. In sub-Saharan Africa the burden of malaria is heaviest. However, the disease also afflicts Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and even parts of Europe.
World Malaria Day was instituted by the World Health Assembly at its 60th session in May 2007. It is a day for recognizing the global effort to provide effective control of malaria. It is an opportunity:
- to learn from each other's experiences and support each other's efforts (for countries in the affected regions);
- to join a global partnership against malaria by new donors;
- to flag the scientific advances of research and academic institutions to both experts and general public; and
- to showcase their efforts by the international partners, companies and foundations and reflect on how to scale up what has worked.
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