communicable disease : malaria

• in 2016 200 million cases of malaria occurred globally
• children under 5 account for 80% of malaria deaths
• links to socio-economic environment for malaria:

  • overcrowded = spread of disease
  • unsanitary conditions in community e.g standing dirty water , encourage more mosquitoes
  • job - farm workers , irrigation workers
• malaria parasite needs temp of 16-32 degrees to develop
• female anopheles spreads malaria parasite
• mosquitoes breed in warm areas of stagnant water , common in flat lowland marshy areas
• malaria cases decrease at altitudes over 1500m , reason why some tropical areas are unaffected such as the Kenyan Highlands
• symptoms of malaria:

  • fever
  • headache
  • chills
  • vomitting
• malaria impacts on wellbeing:

  • ill off school and work - affects household income
  • expensive - pay doctors fees , buy drugs , transport to hospitals
  • creates nutritional deficencies and anaemia in women in malarial regions - 25% of first born have low birth weight
• management and mitigation strategies for malaria:

  • insect nets, bug spray
  • chemoprevention prevents blood infections in humans
  • ACTS (artemisinin-based combination therapies) are used on those that might have malaria
• 3.3 billion people (40% of worlds population) in 100 countries are at risk of being infected with malaria
• occurs in areas of rainforest and savanna grasslands with at least 100mm of rain per year
• 90% of all malaria deaths occur in the WHO African region
• malaria parasite needs temps of 16 - 32 degrees to develop
• the female Anopheles spreads malaria parasite
• malaria endemic - constant number of malaria cases throughout the year
• malaria seasons - peaks of mosquito cases coinciding with monsoon seasons and high humidity
• mosquitos breed in warm areas of stagnant water , common in flat lowland marshy areas
• drainage of stagnant water has resulted in less malaria cases e.g in Southern France and Coastal Spain
• malaria cases decrease at altitudes at 1500m - hence why some tropical areas are unaffected , such as kenyan highlands
• chemoprevention can prevent blood infections in humans
• LLIN - long-lasting insect nets
• IRS - indoor residual spray
• mainly occurs in tropical regions
• what is Indoor Residual Spray (IRS) used for?

  to spray the inside walls of a building to prevent mosquitos
• cons of using IRS

  • expensive
  • may be repeated several times a year
  • mosquitos can evolve and become resistant to them
  • chemicals used in them e.g DDT can cause cancer and miscarriages
• 2 ways of mitigating and managing malaria

  • anti-malarial drugs e.g Malarone or vaccines
  • improving diagnoses for prompt treatment
• why does management and mitigation strategies not always work for malaria?

  majority of people affected the most by malaria live in rural areas with limited access to healthcare