Malaria

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Malaria--

• The Third Largest Killer in the World

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Abstract

• Malaria is a parasitic disease that is
  transmitted by the female Anopheles mosquito. It
  occurs most often in tropical and subtropical
  areas, where the Anopheles mosquitoes thrive.
  300-500 million cases of malaria are reported
  each year, and two million result in death. There
  are four kinds of malaria, the most common being
  Plasmodium Falciparum. The most common symptoms
  are recurring fever, chills, severe anemia,
  headaches, nausea, vomiting, convulsions, and
  delirium. Although malaria is notorious for
  having drug-resistant strains, there are several
  different prescription drugs that can be used to
  treat it. Also, using such protection as a net
  over your bed at night helps to prevent being
  bitten. Some countries cannot even afford
  prevention, let alone treatment, so malaria is
  still a big concern in some of the third-world
  countries. Once before, the World Health
  Organization (WHO) tried to fund eradication
  efforts for those who could not buy medicine to
  treat malaria. In the course of that, though, the
  WHO lost so much money they could no longer
  afford to fund the project. Recently, a new
  foundation called Roll Back Malaria has been
  started. The WHO, UNDP, UNICEF, and the World
  Bank all participate in funding it, and their
  hope is to work with governments and private
  companies to reduce the human and socio-economic
  costs of malaria.

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Where can I get Malaria???

• In 1947, the U.S. started a project to rid the
  country of Malaria. The insides of houses were
  sprayed with mosquito repellent, and within five
  years the number of Malaria cases in the U.S.
  severely declined.
• Most countries, however, cannot afford to do
  this, so many people still are afflicted with the
  disease every year.
• Malaria occurs most often in Central and South
  America, sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East,
  around the Indian peninsula, Southeast Asia,
  Oceania, and any other place with a tropical
  climate and Anopheles mosquitoes.
• If you are traveling to these places, your doctor
  can prescribe prescriptions for you that will
  prevent you from the disease. Also, using an
  insect repellent with DEET and sleeping under a
  bed net reduce the chances of being bitten.

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How can I get Malaria???

• First, a female Anopheles mosquito bites a person
  infected with Malaria. The Malaria parasite lives
  in the bloodstream, and when the mosquito sucks
  up blood it gets several parasites too.
• The parasites grow in the mosquito for about a
  week.
• Once they are matured, they enter another
  persons bloodstream at the mosquitos next meal.
  They immediately go to the liver, where they will
  multiply for another week or two.
• Once they are all grown, they travel out into the
  bloodstream and invade red blood cells. They
  multiply even more inside the cells, until they
  burst. (If enough cells rupture, this will cause
  anemia inside the host.)
• When another mosquito comes along and sucks up
  blood, it will get blood and the parasites that
  live in it. Then the cycle starts all over again.
  (This is how entire villages can come down with
  the same disease.)

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How can I prevent/treat Malaria?

• To prevent Malaria, you can use DEET based insect
  repellent, bed nets at night, citronella candles,
  and anything else to keep away mosquitoes.
• To treat Malaria, there are many different ways
  that depend on many different variables. Doctors
  decide what treatment is best according to age,
  the severity of the case, the kind of malaria,
  etc.
• Quinine, the first treatment, is affordable for
  third-world countries, but it has many side
  effects. Ever since the 1940s, prescription
  drugs have been made, but the malaria parasite
  keeps finding ways to outsmart the drugs.
  Scientists keep working to find a cure, but it
  will take a lot of work to find a prescription
  that the parasite wont become resistant to.
• Sometimes, chemotherapy is used to rid the host
  of malaria parasites.
• The best way to prevent it, though, is to take
  medications from your doctor before traveling to
  an at-risk country.

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Sources

• www.cdc.com
• www.nature.com
• www.malaria-ipca.com
• encarta.msn.com
• www.malaria.freewire
• www.medilinks.org
• www.rbm.who.int