1 slide ( Definition)

Malaria is a potentially life-threatening disease caused by infection with Plasmodium protozoa transmitted by an infective female Anopheles mosquito. Plasmodium falciparum infection carries a poor prognosis with a high mortality if untreated, but it has an excellent prognosis if diagnosed early and treated appropriately. See the image below.

Malarial merozoites in the peripheral blood. Note that several of the merozoites have penetrated the erythrocyte membrane and entered the cell.

(Malaria is one of the most common infectious diseases and a great public health problem worldwide, particularly in Africa and south Asia. About three billion people are at risk of infection in 109 countries. Each year, there are an estimated 250 million cases of malaria leading to approximately one million deaths, mostly in children under five years of age. )

2 slide (Spread)

The biggest risk factor for developing malaria is to live in or to visit tropical areas where the disease is common. Many different subtypes of malaria parasites exist. The variety that causes the most lethal complications is most commonly found in:

African countries south of the Sahara desert

The Indian subcontinent

Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea and Haiti

About half of the world population lives in areas where there is some risk of being infected with malaria. In 109 countries or territories worldwide, malaria is either constantly present (endemic) or not present anymore but with a risk of coming back. These countries are at different stages in the process of malaria elimination.

3 slide (Symptoms)

Malaria is an acute febrile illness. In a non-immune individual, symptoms appear 7 days or more (usually 10–15 days) after the infective mosquito bite. The first symptoms – fever, headache, chills and vomiting – may be mild and difficult to recognize as malaria. If not treated within 24 hours, P. falciparum malaria can progress to severe illness, often leading to death.

Children with severe malaria frequently develop 1 or more of the following symptoms: severe anaemia, respiratory distress in relation to metabolic acidosis, or cerebral malaria. In adults, multi-organ involvement is also frequent. In malaria endemic areas, people may develop partial immunity, allowing asymptomatic infections to occur.

(Malaria symptoms usually appear about 9 to 14 days after the infectious mosquito bite. Typically, malaria produces fever, headache, vomiting and other flu-like symptoms. If drugs are not available for treatment or the parasites are resistant to them, the infection can progress rapidly to become life-threatening. Malaria can kill by infecting and destroying red blood cells (anaemia) and by clogging the capillaries that carry blood to the brain (cerebral malaria) or other vital organs.)

(Patients with malaria typically become symptomatic a few weeks after infection, although the host's previous exposure or immunity to malaria affects the symptomatology and incubation period. In addition, each Plasmodium species has a typical incubation period. Importantly, virtually all patients with malaria present with headache. Clinical symptoms also include the following:

Cough

Fatigue

Malaise

Shaking chills

Arthralgia

Myalgia

Paroxysm of fever, shaking chills, and sweats (every 48 or 72 h, depending on species))

3 slide( ligos eiga)

The malaria parasite enters the human host when an infected Anopheles mosquito takes blood. Inside the host, the parasite undergoes a series of changes as part of its complex life-cycle. Its various stages allow it to evade the immune system, infect the liver and red blood cells, and finally develop into a form that is able to infect a mosquito again when it bites an infected person. Inside the mosquito, the parasite matures until it reaches the sexual stage where it can again infect a human host when the mosquito takes her next blood meal, 10 to 14 or more days later.

5 Slide (Tests and diagnosis)

Blood tests can show the presence of the parasite and help tailor treatment by determining:

Whether you have malaria

Which type of malaria parasite is causing your symptoms

If your infection is caused by a parasite resistant to certain drugs

Whether the disease is affecting any of your vital organs

Some blood tests can take several days to complete, while others can produce results in less than 15 minutes.