Malaria
From WikiDemocracy
Malaria Vaccine
A Malaria vaccine is a vaccine that prevents malaria, a mosquito-borne infectious disease which affected an estimated 249 million people globally in 85 malaria-endemic countries and areas and caused 608,000 deaths in 2022. The first approved vaccine for malaria is RTS,S, known by the brand name Mosquirix. As of April 2023, the vaccine has been given to 1.5 million children living in areas with moderate-to-high malaria transmission. It requires at least three doses in infants by age 2, and a fourth dose extends the protection for another 1–2 years. The vaccine reduces hospital admissions from severe malaria by around 30%
GLOBAL TECHNICAL STRATEGY FOR MALARIA
The designations employed and the presentation of the material in this publication do not imply the expression
of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the World Health Organization concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Dotted and dashed lines on maps represent approximate border lines for which there may not yet be full agreement.
MALARIA AND MOBILITY
Profound disparities, skill shortages, climate change, natural and man-made disasters and economic and political crisis have
driven up the number of both internal and cross-border migrants. Over one billion people are now on the move, of which 244 million are international migrants and 740 million internal migrants.1
Migration is a social determinant of health, it is
often associated with poverty and social exclusion, which impede migrants’ willingness and ability to access health services.
The Story Of... Malaria – and other Deadly Tropical Germs
The viruses found in the cooler parts of the planet have evolved to benefit from seasonal variations in temperature. Influenza is one such virus, which thrives during the winter, when humans are forced together into confined spaces. Tropical diseases are luckier: they thrive year-'round in the heat and humidity of their region. These diseases exist at a fairly constant level, and are therefore known as endemic.
A Renewed Controversy
The centenary of Rachel Carson's birth has been the cause of much celebration (see our profile) and of some renewed criticism. Criticism aside, few can debate the impact that SILENT SPRING has had on our natural world, and in inspiring citizens around the globe to work to protect it.
Doctor Darwin: Diseases That Cheat Natural Selection
It's a basic tenet of biology that natural selection picks the most advantageous traits and passes them on to the next generation. Why, then, do people still suffer from debilitating genetic diseases? Shouldn't the genes that code for these diseases be removed from the population over time? How did they manage to keep themselves around during the course of human evolution? It turns out that there may be a reason that genes for harmful diseases survive evolutionary selection and pass from generation to generation.
Presumptive Treatment to Reduce Imported Malaria among Refugees from East Africa Resettling in the United States
During May 4, 2007–February 29, 2008, the United States resettled 6,159 refugees from Tanzania. Refugees received pre-departure antimalarial treatment with sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine (SP), partially supervised (three/six doses) artemether-lumefantrine (AL), or fully supervised AL. Thirty-nine malaria cases were detected. Disease incidence was 15.5/1,000 in the SP group and 3.2/1,000 in the partially supervised AL group (relative change = –79%, 95% confidence interval = –56% to –90%).
Drug Long Used by Vets Could Boost Fight Against Malaria
Ivermectin, developed decades ago as a veterinary drug, has already been proved effective in humans against river blindness, a disease caused by worms that invade the eyes. It has also used in campaigns in sub-Saharan Africa against elephantiasis, which is caused by parasitic worms and causes severe swelling of the limbs.
A Global Report on Population Mobility and Malaria
Today’s globalised world is witnessing unprecedented
human mobilityi and migrationii trends.
Doctor Darwin: Diseases That Cheat Natural Selection
It's a basic tenet of biology that natural selection picks the most advantageous traits and passes them on to the next generation. Why, then, do people still suffer from debilitating genetic diseases? Shouldn't the genes that code for these diseases be removed from the population over time? How did they manage to keep themselves around during the course of human evolution? It turns out that there may be a reason that genes for harmful diseases survive evolutionary selection and pass from generation to generation.
Deadly Diseases
"Malaria" is a misnomer. Drawn from the Italian mala aria, or "bad air," the name reflects the historical belief that the disease is caused by miasmas, or noxious exhalations from rotting matter or stagnant water. In 1889, a tiny parasite was revealed as the disease-causing agent, and eight years later, the mosquito was identified as the parasite-carrying agent.
Progress Towards a Malaria-Free Tanzania
For Westerners, the emphasis on the Atlantic slave trade often obscures the long and sad history of the Indian Ocean slave trade. Bagamoyo is Tanzania’s oldest city, and was the major shipment point for slaves from the East African interior to the trade networks of the Arabian Peninsula, the Persian Gulf, and west Asia.
Fighting malaria in the remote reaches of Cambodia
by Fred de Sam 11/1/19 PBS NEWS
Every year, nearly half-a-million people die from malaria across the globe. Though there are drugs available to kill the parasite that causes malaria, there is new worry that those medications are losing their effectiveness.
Human Genetics: Concepts and Application
Because of natural selection, different alleles are more likely to confer a survival advantage in different environments. Cycles of infectious disease prevalence and virulence often reflect natural selection.
Two anti-malaria drugs have fewer side effects
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Two drugs used to prevent malaria in travelers appear to have a lower risk of side effects than a third commonly prescribed medication, according to a research review published Tuesday.
A new study shows malaria’s often neglected toll on a vulnerable population: Pregnant women
Tens of thousands of women die and hundreds of thousands of babies are stillborn due to malaria. We can do better.
Fake malaria drugs could 'put millions at risk'
The researchers, from the Wellcome Trust-Mahosot Hospital-Oxford University Tropical Medicine Research Collaboration, published their work in the Malaria Journal.
Ministry of Defence faces legal claims over malaria drug
Law firm Irwin Mitchell says it has formally notified the MoD of several claims after being contacted by about 30 serving and former members of the armed forces about its use of Lariam.
More people died of malaria in 2020 than in 2019. Here's why
by Joanne Silberner 6/12/21 npr
That's one of the encouraging takeaways from the new annual report on malaria issued on Monday by the World Health Organization. But the sobering news is that despite progress in some countries, this debilitating and lethal disease took a greater toll in 2020 than in the recent past.
5 of the world’s deadliest infectious diseases
by Lucy Foster 9/4/20 WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM
COVID-19, caused by a newly discovered coronavirus, can lead to respiratory illness. It has, in a few short months, infected more than 1.5 million people. More than 89,000 have died. And while there are actions we can take to help slow its spread, there's currently no vaccine or treatment available.
You Don't Want To Monkey Around With Monkey Malaria
by Jason Beaubien 11/12/14 npr
In Southeast Asia, the battle against malaria is growing even more complicated. And it's all because of monkeys, who carry a form of malaria that until a few years ago wasn't a problem for people.
How the US foreign aid freeze is intensifying humanitarian crises across the globe
by Lauren Kent 4/2/25 CNN World
These aren’t warnings of what’s to come, but examples of what aid workers say is the fallout of the Trump administration’s freeze on foreign aid and the gutting of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
