Prevention
Risk Awareness
Seek expert advice before you travel, so you are informed
about the risk of malaria as well as any other health risks
in the areas you will be visiting.
Recognition of Symptoms
Seek medical attention urgently if you develop non-specific
flu-like symptoms (especially fever) during or within 12 months
after travel. Remember that malignant malaria is potentially
fatal, and requires immediate medical attention.
Chemoprophylaxis
Chemoprophylaxis is treatment given as a precaution to prevent
colonization of red blood cells if the person is bitten by
an infected mosquito. Chemoprophylaxis is highly recommended
for travelers to high risk areas, but due to increasing chemical
resistance it may not be 100% effective. Drugs used for chemoprophylaxis
include chloroquine, proguanil, mefloquine, and doxycycline.
Each has a specific dosage and schedule which may begin up
to a week before travel and last up to a month after travel.
Anti-malarial drugs have adverse side effects, so it is important
to seek expert consultation to determine what form of chemoprophylaxis
is appropriate.
Mosquito bite prevention
For tips on how to avoid mosquito bites, refer to our FAQ.
There is currently no vaccine for the treatment of malaria.
The World Health Organization (WHO) began a worldwide campaign
to eradicate malaria in 1955, which lasted until the mid 1970’s.
The strategies for large-scale prevention were mosquito control
and drug treatment.
Control of the adult mosquito population focused on the use
of insecticides, such as DDT. Paul Muller discovered the effectiveness
of dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane as an insecticide in 1939,
for which he was awarded a Nobel Prize. Unfortunately, it
was discovered that DDT is toxic in fish, where it accumulates
in fatty tissues. The chemical travels up the food chain,
accumulating in birds and mammals. For this reason, use of
DDT has been banned in many parts of the world.
Elimination of potential mosquito breeding grounds was accomplished
by draining of marshes, swamps, and fields. Drastic attempts
to reduce mosquito breeding grounds included spreading large
amounts on oil on swamps to prevent oxygen from reaching mosquito
larvae.
Reducing the mosquito population, in combination with chloroquinine
drug treatment of malaria patients and contacts, succeeded
in eliminating malaria from Europe, USA, and Australia. Malaria
was largely reduced in Asia, and still a large problem in
Latin American and Africa. In the parts of the world where
malaria still existed, control and containment became the
strategy.
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