Malaria: The Continuous Epidemic Malaria

Malaria: The Continuous Epidemic

Malaria is a serious but common condition that if untreated or improperly treated can prove fatal. The Task Force on Malaria UN Millennium Project (2005) describes the disease as a protozoal infection that is transferred to humans via mosquito bites primarily between sunrise and sunset. World estimates of the incidence of malaria approximate 300 to 500 million clinical cases annually (Earth Institute of Columbia, 2011); with a mortality rate of approximately 3 million worldwide deaths per year. The tropical sections of Africa are said to account for more than 90% of current malaria cases. The majority of deaths resulting from malaria in Africa are among children particularly in remote rural areas where there is poor access to medical care. Groups that are considered at high risk include travelers that are not immunized, pregnant women, displaced persons, refugees, or those in the labor force in areas noted for wide spread disease (Earth Institute of Columbia, 2011).

In relation to the question, "Why does malaria continue to be an epidemic in developing countries?" The broad areas or disciplines that may be consulted for this research project include health, particularly information provided by the World Health Organization; world geography, particularly as it relates to Africa and the epidemic nature of Malaria in sections of Africa south of the Sahara; and the social sciences to establish whether there are sociocultural and/or socioeconomic factors that impact malaria remaining at high levels in developing countries.

The World Health Organization offers a great deal of information in regards to malaria, the primary developing countries where malaria continues to exist at alarming rates, steps that have been taken in the past to remediate epidemic levels of malaria in developed countries, and what strategic actions would be necessary to effect change in the levels of malaria in developing countries, especially in the sub-Saharan sectors of Africa. Although this source may not be used as primary for this research project, it will however, be utilized as a secondary source.

In conducting an online library search to find resources, I was able to locate find the article "Intermittent preventive treatment for malaria in infants: a decision support tool for sub-Saharan Africa" (2010) authored by Ilona Carneiro, Lucy Smith, Amanda Ross, Arantxa Roca-Feltrer et al., published as a Bulletin of the World Health Organization. This article reportedly provides a general overview of the current status of prevention treatment in sub-Saharan Africa and assesses whether intermittent preventive treatment in infants would be an effective form of malaria control. Part of the goal of this project was to provide information to decision makers regarding an effective tool to remediate the epidemic conditions of malaria in the region. In order to locate this article, I used the search terms malaria and Africa and filtered for full text peer reviewed articles published between 2005 and 2011.