Gleaned from: IRIN-News and research sites…quoted as and when…

Reports in green (checked and edited) / highlights in red / extra highlights and comments in brown / dangerous in orange / highly dangerous in pink / good and true in blue / and my comments in black. Kindly note that whenever Orange and Pink indicate Horse-shit and Horse-fart respectively, you will be told…

Italy: The WHO declared Italy free from malaria (Horse-shit) in 1970. Since then, almost all reported cases have been imported, but their number has risen steadily over the last decades. In 1997, a case of introduced malaria occurred in a rural area of Grosseto Province, the first since the eradication of malaria from Italy (Horse-shit again). This event, along with the occasional presence of Plasmodium carriers who contracted the disease in malaria-endemic areas and the ever-increasing number of immigrants from malaria-endemic countries entering Italy raises concern about the possible reappearance of malaria in certain areas – All over Italy, if you ask me! The question that needs to be asked is: Are there mosquitoes in Italy? The answer is: YES! And the conclusion is: If there are mosquitoes in Italy, then there are females among them, and therefore there is malaria and all its affiliates and products…

Guardian.com.uk via Google January 2007

Sandwiched between temperate Europe and tropical Africa, Italy is on the front line of climate change and has seen a rise in tropical diseases such as malaria and encephalitis.

The Italian environmental organisation, Legambiente, reported that Italy had been declared free of malaria by the WHO in 1970 – which means shit! The WHO is no different from all the other con-dupe-scam-syndicates. It checks where it wants and examines whom it wants and declares what is suitable for it to continue to survive and thrive – but it has made a come-back. Tick-and-mosquito-borne encephalitis, a virus which attacks the nerve system, is also on the way back. While only 18 cases had been reported before 1993, 100 were reported since, mostly around Venice – Reported does not mean exact. The figures could be 10 or 100 or even 1,000 times more. Read 822: Sham-scam-con-dupe-syndicates: Child-Sponsorship, Charitable, and Aid Organisations, – out to milk the morons, fleece the fools, and relieve the naïve of the world of their money…

The director-general of Legambiente said that diseases arrived from Africa – and stayed and spread – while tropical animals and plants attack Italy’s bio-diversity. Droughts and floods are on the rise, and semi-desert areas have appeared. A third ailment, visceral leishmaniasis, carried by sand-flies and potentially fatal, has expanded rapidly. Cases in Italy have risen from 50 before 2000 to 150 a year – with the southern region of Campania a hotspot.

Of 6 sustained droughts in Italy in the last 60 years, 4 occurred from 1990 to 2007. The average temperature has increased by 0.4C in the north in 20 years and by 0.7C in the south. Ten million hectares are at risk of desertification. 20% of the fish now swimming in the Mediterranean, including barracuda, are types that have migrated from the Red Sea as water temperatures rise.

Italy's combination of sea coast, mountains, deep valleys and plains, gives rise to a rich variety of food-products, but climate change could tip the balance. Italy is at the southern edge of the globe's temperate area and that is why it has been particularly hit by the collapse of the climatic equilibrium.

France: Epidemiological data from the French National Reference Center for Imported Diseases showed that the estimated number of cases of imported malaria Horse-shit in France increased from 5,940 in 1998 to 7,127 in 1999 and 8,056 in 2000 – To them all cases are imported cases since no authority would admit to locally transmitted malaria. And what does imported really mean? Doesn’t it mean the disease is now in the country? That 3-year progression ended in 2001 when the number of estimated cases fell back to 7,223. It was due mainly to the concomitant increase in the number of people travelling to endemic zones, especially in Africa. The countries in which contamination occurred were located in tropical Africa 95%, Asia 2.2%, and Latin America 2.7%. During the 3-year period from 1998 to 2000, there were a total of 13 autochthonous cases of malaria involving patients with no history of travel to tropical areas……7,223 in 2001 are still 1,283 cases more than in 1998 and these are only the reported cases or known figures.

Autochthonous: original flora, fauna, or inhabitants of the region in which it is found.

The distribution of Plasmodium species involved in imported malaria in France was stable with 83% involving Plasmodium falciparum – the worst and most dangerous strain – 6% involving Plasmodium vivax, 6.5% involving Plasmodium ovale, and 1.3% involving Plasmodium malariae. Attacks were clinically uncomplicated in 90 to 95% of cases and severe in 2 to 5% including fatal Plasmodium falciparum malaria in 0.37 to 0.49% of cases.

Medscape-today via Google June 2007

Plasmodium falciparum malaria is a serious health hazard for travelers to malaria-endemic areas and is often diagnosed on return to the country of residence. A retrospective study was conducted of imported falciparum malaria among travelers returning to France from malaria-endemic areas from 1996 through 2003. Epidemiologic, clinical, and parasitologic data were collected by a network of 120 laboratories and factors associated with fatal falciparum malaria were identified by logistic regression analysis. During the study period, 21,888 falciparum malaria cases were reported. There were 96 deaths for a fatality-rate of 4.4 per 1,000 cases of falciparum malaria. In multivariate analysis, risk factors independently associated with death from imported malaria were older age, European origin, travel to East Africa, and absence of chemoprophylaxis. Fatal imported malaria remains rare and preventable. Pre-travel advice and malaria management and precautions should take these risk factors into account, particularly for senior travelers.

Imported malaria is increasingly reported in Europe and North America, with an estimated 30,000 cases yearly. In 2000, the countries with the highest rates of imported Horse-shit malaria were France: 8,000 cases, the UK: 2,069 cases, the USA: 1,402 cases, Italy: 986 cases, and Germany: 732 cases – All these figures are only estimates. The actual figures could be anything from ten times to a thousand times and even more. Imported Plasmodium falciparum malaria is a serious health hazard for travelers to malaria-endemic areas, owing to the potentially severe illness and high fatality rates per 1,000: France 4; Italy 6.5; the UK 8.5; the USA 13; Germany 30.4. Risk factors associated with fatal imported malaria are poorly known. Limited series have suggested that the fatality rate is significantly lower for migrants from malaria-endemic areas than for patients from areas not endemic for the disease. Antimalarial chemoprophylaxis, even incomplete or inappropriate, may also confer a degree of protection. Better knowledge of the characteristics and risk factors for fatal imported malaria might help to improve prevention and patient management. The main features of fatal imported falciparum malaria observed in France were retrospectively analyzed during 1996–2003 and compared with those for nonfatal cases.

Australia was declared malaria-free Horse-shit in 1983. However, there has been an increase in plasmodium falciparum cases since 1990. Comparison between the 6-year periods 1990-1995 and 1996-2001 showed that plasmodium falciparum had increased by 14% to 44% while plasmodium vivax decreased by 77% to 50% and one patient died – Decreased!? And only one patient died! By God and Satan! Impossible! But even if true, that was in 2001, and 8 years is a very long time! Malaria remains an important and serious parasitic disease in Australia. Significant numbers of Australian travelers take inadequate chemo-prophylaxis while visitors, mostly immigrants in detention and armed-force personnel, are additional sources of imported malaria.

I could go on and on to quote more and more countries ad infinitum. However, here are some names, or hints, on what the anopheles mosquito, or the female of the species, has come up with: Quartan malaria; Falciparum malaria; Biduoterian fever; Black-water fever; Tertian malaria…and it only takes one bite!

Gleaned from: IRIN-News and research sites…

Mexico 2007

Malaria: Prophylaxis with chloroquine is recommended for only a small number of areas not usually visited by travelers, including the areas near the Guatemala and Belize borders in the states of Chiapas, Quintana Roo, and Tabasco; rural areas in the states of Nayarit, Oaxaca, Sinaloa; and the areas between 24°N and 28°N latitude, and 106°W and 110°W longitude, which lie in parts of Sonora, Chihuahua, and Durango. There is no malaria risk in the major resorts along the Pacific and Gulf Coasts or along the US-Mexico border. This may have been true in 2007 – I strongly doubt it, and I have my reasons. No one, and no country, can predict or dictate what or where – but this is 2009, 24 months or 730 days, later…More than ample time for the female anopheles mosquito to know what to do, and do what it has to do…

However, travelers are required to, or must, be vaccinated against the following diseases: Hepatitis A & B, Typhoid Fever, Rabies, Measles-Mumps-Rubella, and Tetanus-Diphtheria – and these are diseases that are no jokes, and are transmitted by the female anopheles mosquito or caused by, or result from, malaria…except rabies which results from (rabid) canine-bites

Canine: members of the dog family – dogs, wolves, jackals, foxes

California

Sonoma Mosquito: Sporadic locally-acquired cases occur every year and leave no doubt that malaria could easily regain a foothold. 16 Locally acquired malaria cases were reported in California. Each time, swift response by health officials and the mosquito abatement districts prevented the disease from becoming re-established. There was one large outbreak that occurred in Nevada County, where Anopheles freeborni around a Lake Vira campground bit a marine recently back from Asia and over several months transmitted the infection to more than 35 girl-scouts and other campers. The girls had already returned to their homes scattered throughout California and Nevada before their infections began to be diagnosed – Only one man or woman! Who would believe such Horse-shit? By God and Satan!

An undocumented labourer was the probable source of a similar outbreak in San Diego County that affected over 30 migrant farm-workers and local residents before it was stopped; Anopheles hermsi was the carrier. Two hurricanes that battered western Mexico in 1997 were followed by a dramatic rise in malaria along the Pacific coast. Health officials for the state of Oaxaca recorded 10,755 cases – up from 586 the year before.

The USA

The majority of malaria infections in the USA occur among persons who have travelled to areas with ongoing transmission. In the US, cases can occur through exposure to infected blood products, congenital transmission, or through mosquito-borne transmission.

Eastern Equine Encephalitis and Western Equine Encephalitis – relating to, belonging to, or affecting, horses, donkeys, and zebras – occur in the US where they cause diseases in humans and some bird species. Because of the high mortality rate, EEE and WEE are regarded as two of the most serious mosquito-borne diseases in the USA. Symptoms range from mild flu-like illness to encephalitis, coma and death. Viruses that are carried by arthropods – blood-sucking insects such as ticks, fleas, and mosquitoes are known collectively as arboviruses. Arboviruses contain RNA, exist in over 500 species, and include the viruses that cause encephalitis, yellow fever, dengue fever, and the West Nile virus. The West Nile virus was accidentally introduced into the United States in 1999 and by 2003 had spread to almost every state with over 3,000 cases in 2006 – I say: accidentally on purpose, by the original femme fatale, and today, as to the facts and figures, anyone’s guess is as good as anyone else’s

Fight the Bite – Year to Date – California West Nile Virus Website

4 WNV-fatalities were reported: Fresno 1, Los Angeles 1, Merced 1, and Stanislaus 1… 91 human-cases from 17 counties tested positive for WNV in 2009…so far, and those were only the reported cases…

17 horses from 11 counties tested positive for WNV in 2009…so far…

497 dead birds from 36 counties tested positive for WNV in 2009…

7 new WNV-positive mosquito samples were reported from the following counties: Kern 1, Los Angeles 5, and Riverside 1… 1,054 mosquito-samples from 27 counties tested positive for WNV in 2009…

422 sentinel-chickens from 23 counties tested positive for WNV in 2009…recorded cases only

9 squirrels from 7 counties tested positive for WNV in 2009…known cases only. There could be thousands of sentinel-chickens and squirrels roaming – or dead and dying – in the US with WNV and other mosquito-transmitted diseases…

As of 29^th September 2009, 395 human-cases had been reported nationwide in the following 32 states: Arizona 15, Arkansas 1, California 60, Colorado 51, Georgia 3, Idaho 8, Illinois 1, Indiana 3, Iowa 3, Kansas 7, Kentucky 2, Louisiana 13, Minnesota 1, Mississippi 37, Missouri 1, Montana 3, Nebraska 33, Nevada 12, New Jersey 2, New Mexico 6, New York 1, North Dakota 1, Ohio 2, Oklahoma 4, Oregon 7, Pennsylvania 2, South Carolina 3, South Dakota 14, Tennessee 2, Texas 64, Washington 25, and Wyoming 8.

Of the 395 individuals, 202 had neurotic-invasive illness – encephalitis. The median age of the 395 was 53 years, range: 2-91 years; 58% were male… 12 fatalities had been reported as of 29^th September: California 2, Idaho 1, Indiana 1, Mississippi 3, New Mexico 1, Texas 3, and Wyoming 1…these are known or recorded cases only. Multiply 395 by 10 at least in order to have just an idea of the situation…I would multiply 395 by 100

Malaria Policy Centre 5^th October 2009

At a recent conference, Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan formulated a joint annual action plan to lay down groundwork to fight malaria. Known as PIAMNET (Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan Malaria Network), the organisation planned to resolve administrative issues between the three countries and drafted proposals to help mobilize resources. Their efforts were not in vain – US-AID pledged resources, particularly in the border areas of Pakistan.

The chair-person at the conference urged the three countries to utilize indigenous resources to ensure cross-border co-operation in the highly endemic district of Balochistan, a province in south-east Pakistan.

AFGHANISTAN: half the population at risk of malaria. 14 million vulnerable

IRIN-News July 2009

Stagnant water in flood-affected parts of Afghanistan is the perfect breeding ground for malaria-causing mosquitoes. According to OCHA, the January-June floods affected over 21,000 households and caused extensive damage in over 15 of the country’s 34 provinces. At least 14 provinces in the north, east and south are highly vulnerable to malaria, especially in the summer.

According to the UN-WHO, Afghanistan had the fourth largest malaria burden worldwide with an estimated annual incidence of 18 per 1,000 people in 2007. According to the Ministry of Public Health, considerable progress had been made in curbing malaria – from 626,839 cases in 2002 to around 467,000 in 2008. A fall in numbers was also reported in the first three months of 2009 compared with the same period in 2008: 49,000 patients compared to over 53,000 – Kindly note that these are figures of reported cases only. Health officials said the distribution of 1.2 million insecticide-treated bed-nets in 2008 and improved public awareness contributed to the reduction in the number of malaria patients.

Malaria affects hundreds of thousands of Afghans every year, and also acts as a major brake on economic development.

Malaria in Iraq:

Prophylaxis is recommended for Basrah province and for areas at altitudes below 1500m (4921 ft) in the provinces of Duhok, Erbil, Ninawa, Sulaimaninya…Transmission occurs chiefly from May through November. The incidence of malaria has risen in recent years, due in part to political instability. There is no malaria risk in Baghdad, Tikrit, and Ramadi. For many years, the drug of choice has been chloroquine, which is inexpensive and generally well-tolerated. Insect protection measures are essential.

Malaria: The view from India

In India, malaria has become a hidden problem – or a problem that the authorities would rather hide

Global-Post by Shailaja Neelakantan June 2009

26 people died of malaria in a single hospital in the north-eastern Indian state of Assam this winter, but as far as the government is concerned, they might as well never have existed. The district administration reported no deaths, and nobody except members of a local NGO took any notice. India has always under-reported its malaria cases – government officials admit off the record – but the scope of the hidden problem has become astounding. While the official figures state that in 2008, India had 1.5 million malaria cases, resulting in 924 deaths, the real number of deaths was much higher. A doctor who works for the Ant, a volunteer organisation that treats villagers, said the numbers were a joke, and that in Assam alone they had at least 1,500 deaths last year. He added that unless one knew the level of the disease burden how could one plan to prevent or treat it? According to non-governmental sources and some government officials who didn't want to be named, the number of malaria-related deaths in India was closer to 40,000 in 2008. I say: multiply 40,000 by 10 and that would be even less…

Indeed, the under-reporting of malaria cases is one of the main reasons that India has been unable to prevent or treat malaria cases – they could be treated, perhaps, but never prevented. It has led to an astounding absence of knowledge, even among supposedly qualified private and government health officials and workers. Few know, for instance, that malaria occurs in different topographies for different reasons and must be prevented differently in each area.

These problems are further complicated by foreign agencies such as the WHO which, under the influence of global lending agencies like the World Bank and big pharmaceutical companies, have forced India to adopt prevention methods that don't suit local conditions and to initiate huge, ill-considered projects rather than targeted ones. For example, under the National Vector-Borne Disease Control Programme, the umbrella programme for prevention and control of malaria Horse-shit the Indian government has introduced new rapid diagnostic tests, put a legion of India's version of barefoot-doctors in the field and rushed to convert to expensive Artemisinin-based Combination Therapies. None of these tools is sufficient, according to the grassroots health workers who are fighting this disease in the jungles.

Reports in green (checked and edited) / highlights in red / extra highlights and comments in brown / dangerous in orange / highly dangerous in pink / good and true in blue / and my comments in black. Kindly note that whenever Orange and Pink indicate Horse-shit and Horse-fart respectively, you will be told…

Saudi Arabia / Yemen March

IRIN-News 2008

An extensive Saudi-Yemeni campaign to combat malaria was begun in three Yemeni provinces near the border with Saudi Arabia, with the aim of reducing malaria in those areas.

The campaign would cover 13 districts and target areas near the Saudi-Yemeni border and parts of Tehama region. The Saudi-Yemeni partnership in combating malaria began in 2001 and National Malaria Control Programme NMCP said the two countries aim to make the peninsula malaria-free by 2015 – These people don’t know the female anopheles mosquito very well, do they? She is the veritable and original femme fatale!

In March 2007, 16,707 houses, with 48,580 rooms, inhabited by 100,803 people were sprayed thanks to a Saudi-Yemeni campaign in six border districts. Nice try, but it won’t wash because Man-the-Ape attacks the mosquitoes in 13 districts; they retreat to other districts or hide where the insecticides cannot reach. Many are the times when Man-the-Ape sprays homes and rooms with insecticides, and closes door-and-window-screens, yet wakes up the next day to find that not a few mosquitoes had survived and had their fill of blood. Man-the-Ape disperses them, they retreat and regroup; Man-the-Ape improves, they improvise; Man-the-Ape invents and/or develops new drugs, tools, strategies and methods, they develop resistance and circumvent or adapt. It’s evolution in motion otherwise what a cruel, heartless, and mindless God he must be to create such a coarse and callous creature like the mosquito…unless Satan, too, is doing his own creation – his own thing – on the side, with or without the knowledge or approval of God!

The NMCP distributed 381,138 mosquito-nets in 95 malaria-infected districts and, according to the WHO office in Yemen, some 60% of the population lives in malaria areas. Globally, malaria causes more than 5.5 million deaths annually, according to the Centers for Disease Control and in Yemen, there are around 900,000 recorded malaria cases annually and tens of thousands of people die of the disease every year. Plasmodium falciparum, a species of parasite, causes 90% of cases in Yemen and is responsible for the vast majority of deaths from malaria.

According to the Malaria Atlas Project, new research showed that high rates of population inflows from Somalia would represent a continued risk of re-introducing the parasite. There are about 800,000 African migrants in Yemen, mostly from the Horn of Africa, according to the Ministry of Interior, and more arrive daily.

Read “the Dire Plights of Others” series: 414 / 415 / 416 / 417 / 418 and 419

Medical-News-Today October 2006

Malaria is not usually thought of as a major disease in the Middle-East, but a study from Yemen revealed high levels of severe malaria in children. In fact, the figures showed that as many as 4 out of 10 children attending hospital with severe illness could be affected during the peak season – comparable to many countries in Africa.

Researchers identified over 2,000 children aged from 6 months to 10 years who were admitted to two public hospitals with suspected malaria. Malaria was confirmed in 1,332 children, 808 of whom had severe malaria.

The proportion of admissions varied according to the season, from 1% between July and September to 40% in February and March. 26 children died in hospital. Most deaths were in children with a neurological presentation, and more girls died than boys. Malaria places a high burden on health services in Yemen, say the authors. Malaria-control should be a priority and lessons should be learnt from other areas with seasonal malaria.

Oman

Beginning in April 1998, the surveillance system in Dhofar region, Oman, detected malaria cases among individuals…malaria cases were defined as unexplained fevers in residents of the Dhofar region from April to September 1998…Over a period of 7 months, 1279 patients with fever were examined for malaria parasites. 65 cases were positive for malaria – but there are several other fevers like yellow fever, dengue fever, Rift-Valley fever, that are transmitted by the female anopheles mosquito…

Out of the 2323 slides collected from the community and 2487 from school children, 21 slides were positive. All of them were from illegal immigrants. The entomological survey detected three vectors, previously found in the region: A. d'thali, A. sergenti and A. stephensi

Although the region is classified as a malaria-free region (Horse-shit), it has the potential for malaria introduction. That outbreak most likely occurred due to the influx of hundreds of illegal Somali immigrants into the Dhofar region due to the civil war, providing a sufficient number of gametocyte carriers for local anopheles mosquitoes to feed on and transmit…

The UAE

The Korean Journal of Parasitology May 2009

Local malaria transmission came to an end – supposedly – in 1997. Nevertheless, the UAE had been subjected to substantial importation of malaria cases from abroad, concerning both UAE nationals and immigrants from malarial countries with a total number of 2,119 cases in 2007. Plasmodium infections were identified with the genus P. vivax and P. falciparum…This simply means that malaria either has been there all the time or has returned…

Gleaned from various sources – quoted as and when

Dear readers and fellow-Apes. Below are the facts and figures of a few African countries; and they ought to give you a general idea of what is taking place on the continent – slightly more, but never less

Report in green (checked and edited) / highlights in red / extra highlights and comments in brown / dangerous in orange / highly dangerous in pink / good and true in blue / and my comments in black. Kindly note that whenever Orange and Pink indicate Horse-shit and Horse-fart respectively, you will be told…

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC): malaria still biggest killer

IRIN-News April 2008

Malaria is the primary cause of sickness, mortality, and morbidity in the country as it is in all of Africa, despite the efforts made. The secondary cause is tuberculosis. According to data, 5,000,000 cases of malaria are registered every year throughout the country with a population of nearly 60 million, and between 500,000 and 1,000,000 people die of the disease every year.

Congo-News-Channel via IRIN-News 5^th October 2009

In the area of DRC's Province Orientale, malaria is endemic and nearly every child gets it.

Health experts estimate that each child under five in the DRC has 6 to 10 attacks of malaria per year. That is equivalent to as many as, or more than, 100 million episodes, annually. Approximately 180,000 Congolese children under five die from the disease every year and many others are orphaned when malaria weakens and kills their parents.

Workers loaded insecticide-treated bed-nets onto barges in Kinshasa, DRC. The nets would be transported up the Congo River for distribution to remote regions of the country. ITBNs are good and will protect people when they are asleep, but what about when they are awake? Let not anyone underestimate the female anopheles mosquito, or take her for a fool…

Congo Brazzaville: Fighting malaria in children‏. Climate changes accelerate vector-borne diseases

Climate changes are directly responsible for the geographic distribution of vector-borne diseases such as malaria and epidemics of meningococcal meningitis, tuberculosis, Rift-Valley fever, and cholera.

Msn-Encarta Dictionary

Meningococcal: bacterium that causes cerebrospinal meningitis; Latin Neisseria meningitides

Meningitis: a serious, oft-times fatal illness in which a viral or bacterial infection inflames the meninges, causing symptoms such as severe headaches, vomiting, stiff neck, and high fever

Meninges: the three membranes that surround and protect the brain and the spinal cord, called the dura-mater, the arachnoid-mater, and the pia-mater

Ghana

IRIN-News and other sources April 2009

Malaria is transmitted throughout all of Ghana and is responsible for more than 44% of out-patient visits and approximately 22% of deaths in children under five. It is one of 15 countries benefiting from the President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI), a five-year, $1.2 billion programme led by the US Agency for International Development – USAID – and implemented together with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – CDC-P.

At a glance

US Census Bureau and International Data Base 2009: Population: 23.8 million (estimated) / Life expectancy: 59 (males) 61 (females) / WHO World Malaria Report 2008: Population risk: 100% (2006) / UNICEF State of the World’s Children 2009: Mortality rate (children under 5): 115/1,000 or approximately 1 out of 9

In support of Ghana’s National Malaria Control Programme NMCP, PMI backs four key intervention strategies to prevent and treat malaria: Insecticide-treated mosquito nets (ITNs) / Indoor residual spraying with insecticides / sporadic preventive treatment for pregnant women / diagnosis of malaria and treatment with artemisinin-based combination therapy

Nigeria

Millions of deaths attributable to malaria are recorded globally. The disease constitutes a huge epidemiologic burden in Africa and continues to cripple the economic development on the continent. The disease is responsible for 60% of out-patient visits to health facilities, 30% of childhood deaths, and 11% of maternal deaths. The annual financial loss due to malaria is estimated to be about 132 billion Naira in the form of treatment costs, prevention, loss of man-hours etc; yet, it is a treatable and completely evitable disease.

Roll Back Malaria RBM in Nigeria anchors on the global strategies for malaria control which are multi-pronged and of proven efficacy: Prompt and Effective Case Management / Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS) and Environmental Management / Intermittent Preventive Treatment of malaria in pregnancy / Integrated Vector Management including Use of ITNs

Other cross-cutting interventions include Advocacy, Communication and Social Mobilization, Effective Programme Management, Monitoring, Evaluation, Partnership and Collaboration

IRIN-News

Indonesia: Renewed drive to eliminate malaria

Jakarta April 2008: Indonesia, where an estimated 100 million people live in areas susceptible to malaria, had embarked on a drive to eliminate the disease by 2030 – That’ll be the year! Human-Apes invent and improve – evolve – new drugs and methods, and mosquitoes change and adapt to them, and – evolve – become more resistant and resilient…evolution in motion…

In 2007, 1.75 million Indonesians were clinically diagnosed with malaria and more than 300,000 people tested positive for the disease. A clinical diagnosis involves only the observation of symptoms while positive cases are confirmed through microscopy slides or rapid diagnostic tests – Again, these figures are too pat for belief.

The fatality rate in Indonesia was estimated at about 1% but it was believed that many more deaths were not recorded, due to no access to health-services among people in remote villages.

Five provinces in eastern Indonesia had been categorized as high-endemic regions. While the islands of Java, Borneo and Sulawesi were considered low-endemic, in several areas malaria cases remained high. Under a programme launched by the health ministry, Indonesia aimed to halve the number of villages where more than 5 in 1,000 people were infected with malaria by 2010, and eliminate the disease by 2030. In some villages in the easternmost region of Papua, which consists of three provinces, between 30 and 80% of the population were infected with malaria.

Like I said before, the wily, wicked, cunning, and highly ruthless, resilient, and relentless mosquito is a creature that has learnt to migrate, change, adopt and adapt to any and all conditions, environments and circumstances. Man-the-Ape attacks, it retreats and regroups; Man-the-Ape improves, it improvises; Man-the-Ape invents and/or develops new drugs, tools, strategies and methods, it develops resistance and circumvents or adapts. I know the mosquito too well and I respect it too much to underestimate it or take it for a fool! To say that Creation is true and Evolution is false; and that God created this coarse and callous creature is…I say it evolved into what it is. It’s evolution in motion. By God and Satan!

Thailand: Winning the battle against malaria but challenges remained

Bangkok April 2008: Thailand, widely recognised as a leader in the global war or struggle against malaria, announced a 50% drop in mortality and morbidity in 2005 from 1998. The number of reported cases dropped from 192,000 in 1998 to 51,000 in 2004 – JEEZ! See how exact and glib the figures were!? Even so, the WHO and Department of Public Health viewed malaria as an ongoing disease and reported a sharp rise in infections since 2004. There were more than 63,000 reported cases in 2007. According to the WHO, half of all malaria cases in Thailand were in its four southernmost provinces: Songkhla, Pattani, Yala, and Narathiwat. The other half are among migrant workers and displaced persons from Myanmar, Laos, and Cambodia along the border.

However, critical challenges stemmed from an influx of counterfeit and sub-standard anti-malarial drugs into the country. Another serious hurdle was treating artesunate-sensitive and possible artesunate-resistant malaria. There was also a risk of these strains spreading from south-east Asia to around the world. Artesunate, an extract of the artemisia annua herb, is a powerful anti-malarial therapy. Public health experts view artesunate, as part of Artemisinin-based combination therapy, as the best available treatment against multi-drug-resistant Plasmodium falciparum malaria in south-east Asia.

The Philippines: 6 provinces declared malaria-free, but 59 provinces declared the mosquitoes free to move, bite, and bestow…and malaria free to kill at will

Manila April 2008: The Department of Health marked World Malaria Day on 25^th April by declaring 6 more provinces malaria-free, bringing the total to 22 out of 81. The provinces of Marinduque, Sorsogon, and Albay in Luzon; Eastern and Western Samar in the Visayas; and Surigao del Norte in Mindanao were declared malaria-free (Horse-shit) after having had no reported indigenous or local natives cases for five consecutive years. In 2006, Benguet, Cavite, and Masbate were classified malaria-free. 13 other provinces were declared free of the disease in 1999, and remain so today. Or so they say! Believe only half of what you see, and nothing of what you hear…the fact that there were no reported cases does not mean no cases at all. Thousands of the local natives have no access to official venues.  Also, the D of H could have said that only to cover its ass – after pocketing at least half of the funds allotted to the project.

Malaria cases had consistently declined from more than 76,000 reported in 1990 to 46,000 in 2005, with 150 deaths in that year. In 2006, malaria incidences declined a further 26% to 33,800, with 89 deaths. Such exact figures make me need to hold my nose…something smells

Challenges remain. The disease is still endemic in 59 provinces, with 26 Category A provinces contributing about 90% of the total reported cases. There are 10.8 million people at risk of acquiring the disease in these endemic areas and malaria still has the 9^th highest morbidity rate in the country. The WHO lists the Philippines among the 10 malaria endemic countries in the Western Pacific region. Now, let’s take that half-Horse-shit and half-Horse-fart word they are so fond of using: malaria-free. Malaria-free could mean either free from malaria, which is impossible, or malaria is free to roam at will – all of you out there, and the rest in here, of my dear readers and fellow-Apes may choose…but look well, and choose well.

2009: According to the WHO, there are an estimated 109 malaria countries in 4 regions – Africa, Asia Pacific, the Americas, and the Middle-East and Eurasia…see 915…but don’t be fooled, and take it from me…wherever you see mosquitoes on this doomed planet, you’d better be sure there is malaria in one strain or the other – severe, moderate, or mild – and other diseases. Also, and this is more important than you think, there is no such a disease as mild malaria. Mild is only mild when mild is recognised early, taken very seriously, and treated immediately. Fool around with mild and mild will soon show you how wild mild can be…

The Mosquitoes retreat but do not surrender and they return with a vengeance…

Malaria: the invincible and often invisible killer-monster; and the mosquito: a wily, wicked, cunning, and highly ruthless, resilient, and relentless creature that has learnt to migrate, change, and adapt to any and all conditions, environments and circumstances.  To think that a kind, merciful, loving, compassionate, and all-forgiving God created it! I wonder why!

It takes just one look to fall in love; it takes just one bite to catch malaria!

Cambodia: Malaria on decline due to concerted preventive and awareness efforts

IRIN-News / Plus-News

Phnom Penh April 2008: Please sleep under the insecticide-treated nets ran the message on a large banner erected for Malaria Day on 25^th April. In Cambodia, that message sank in.

Malaria, one of the world's deadliest diseases, appeared to have been on the retreat in Cambodia as the number of infections and deaths due to the disease had decreased in previous years thanks to better health education and concerted efforts at mosquito-net distribution and village-level treatments. The National Centre for Parasitology, Entomology, and Malaria Control said 100,000 malaria cases had been reported in 2006, falling to 59,000 in 2007. Although the downward trend was believed to be continuing, data for the first three months of 2008 were not yet available – Well; reported case does not mean actual cases. Officials could have registered fewer cases in order to prove their hard work and efficiency, fool the (M)asses, and please their superiors.

Preventing malaria in its early stages and treating it rapidly was the key to that supposed success; wide-scale distribution of insecticide-treated nets and providing awareness-training to village volunteers on the frontlines had also been crucial. Some 557,000 mosquito-nets were distributed free in 2007, and 1,000,000 mosquito-nets would be distributed to the neediest communities in 2008 – However, to me, these figures are too exact to be credible

Always multiply reported cases by at least 2 in order to have the closest approximate figures; you may make your own calculations.

Msn-Encarta

Parasitology: the scientific study of plants and animals that live as parasites

Entomology: the branch of zoology that deals with the study of insects

Cambodia: New malaria strain resists potent drugs

The AP via Bloomberg.com July 2009

Malaria has become resistant to the most powerful drugs available in Southeast Asia, as the WHO races to stop the spread of the strain that could be disastrous for global malaria-control.

Treatments derived from artemisinin, the basis of the most effective anti-malaria drugs, took almost twice as long to clear the parasites that cause the disease in patients in western Cambodia as in patients in northwestern Thailand, according to a study published today in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The delay in parasite clearance times showed that the drugs are losing their power against the disease – I say the parasite has mutated, evolved, into a new, more resistant and resilient strain – in Cambodia. The failure of artemisinin-based treatments would be disastrous for global efforts aimed at curbing the mortality and morbidity wrought by the malady, said a spokesman who led the study at the Mahidol Oxford Research Unit in Bangkok.

Scientists have known for decades that Pailin, near Cambodia’s border with Thailand, is a breeding ground for drug-resistant malaria. Chloroquine and Roche Holding AG’s Fansidar began to fail there in the 1950s and 1960s, before becoming ineffective elsewhere, according to the study. The WHO, with $23 million from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, has co-ordinated efforts to prevent artemisinin-resistant malaria from spreading to Africa, which has 90% of the world’s cases of the disease. Widespread artemisinin-resistant malaria would cause several more millions of deaths, without exaggeration.

Socio-economic effects

Malaria is not just a disease commonly associated with poverty; it is also the cause of poverty and a major hindrance to economic development. The disease has been associated with major negative economic effects on regions where it is widespread. A comparison of average per capita GDP in 1995, adjusted to give parity of purchasing power, between malarial and non-malarial countries demonstrated a five-fold difference; moreover, in countries where malaria is common, average per capita GDP rose only 0.4% per year between 1965 and 1990, compared to 2.4% per year in other countries. However, correlation does not demonstrate causation, and the prevalence is at least partly because these regions do not have the financial capacity to prevent malaria. In its entirety, the economic impact of malaria has been estimated to cost Africa $12 billion every year. The economic impacts include costs of health care, off-work days due to sickness, days lost in education, decreased productivity due to brain damage from cerebral malaria, and loss of investment and tourism. In some countries with a heavy malaria burden, the disease may account for as much as 40% of public health expenditure, 30-50% of in-patient admissions, and up to 50% of out-patient visits.

Diagnosis and Treatment:

Since the 1600s malaria has been treated with quinine, a chemical derived from the bark of the South American cinchona tree. The tree grows on the slopes of the Andes, mainly in Peru, and it was the first effective treatment for malaria. However, it was not until 1820 that the active ingredient, quinine, was extracted from the bark, isolated, and named by the French chemists, Pierre Joseph Pelletier and Joseph Bienaimé Caventou. The drug interferes with the parasite’s development in the blood.

Chloroquine, a drug developed in the 1930s, 1940s, is more effective, safer, and cheaper than quinine. However, unfortunately, malaria parasites have developed resistance to chloroquine, rendering it useless in many parts of the world. Other anti-malarial drugs include atovaquone, mefloquine, pyrimethamine, doxycycline, and artemisinin derivatives. Malaria parasites have developed resistance to these also, necessitating a search for new drugs and for new combinations of existing drugs. Physicians increasingly prescribe a combination of drugs in treating malaria to improve their effectiveness.

In the early 20^th century, before antibiotics, patients with syphilis: an infectious disease caused by spirochetes (corkscrew-shaped bacteria), treponema pallidum, and usually transmitted by sexual contact and/or kissing – were intentionally infected with malaria to create a fever. By accurately controlling the fever with quinine, the effects of both syphilis and malaria could be minimized. Some patients died from the malaria, but that was preferable to the almost-certain death from syphilis.

Artesunate: an International Non-proprietary Name, is part of the artemisinin group of drugs that treat malaria. It is a semi-synthetic derivative of artemisinin that is water-soluble and may therefore be given by injection. It is sometimes abbreviated AS.

Amodiaquine: trade names: Camoquin, Flavoquine, is a 4-aminoquinoline compound related to chloroquine, used as an anti-malarial and anti-inflammatory agent.

Amodiaquine has been shown to be more effective than chloroquine in treating chloroquine-resistant Plasmodium falciparum malaria infections and may afford more protection than chloroquine when used as weekly prophylaxis. Amodiaquine, like  , is generally well tolerated. Although licensed, the drug is not marketed in the US but is widely available in Africa. Its use, therefore, is probably more practical in long-term visitors and persons who reside in Africa.

Malaria is the greatest source of selective pressure on human genomes in history. This is due to the high levels of mortality and morbidity caused by malaria, especially the P. falciparum species; below are a few of the deadly diseases that are caused directly or indirectly by malaria

Black-water fever: In malignant malaria, a large number of red blood-cells or corpuscles are destroyed. Haemoglobin (the red pigment) from the blood corpuscles is excreted in the urine, which therefore becomes dark and almost the colour of cola.

Cerebral malaria: Malignant malaria can affect the brain and the rest of the central nervous system. It is characterized by changes in the level of consciousness, convulsions, and paralysis.

Encephalitis: An infectious disease of the human central nervous system characterized by an acute inflammation of the brain, commonly caused by viral infections. It can be caused by a bacterial infection such as bacterial meningitis spreading directly to the brain (primary encephalitis), or it may be a complication of a current infectious disease like rabies or syphilis (secondary encephalitis). Certain parasitic or protozoal infestations, such as toxoplasmosis, malaria, or primary amoebic meningoencephalitis, can also cause encephalitis in people with compromised immune systems. Lyme disease may also cause encephalitis. Bartonella henselae can also lead to this. Brain-damage occurs as the inflamed brain pushes against the skull, and can lead to death, coma and/or paralysis.

Sickle-cell disease: The best-studied influence of the malaria parasite upon the human genome is the blood disease: Sickle-cell disease or sickle-cell anaemia is a blood disorder characterized by red blood-cells that assume an abnormal, rigid sickle-shape that reduces their flexibility and results in restricted movement through blood vessels, depriving downstream tissues of oxygen. The disease is chronic and lifelong: individuals are most often well, but their lives are punctuated by periodic painful attacks and a risk of various other serious complications.

Sickle-cell disease occurs, where malaria is common, but it also occurs in people of other ethnicities. This is more common in people (or their descendants) from parts of the world such as sub-Saharan Africa because those with one or two alleles of the sickle-cell disease are resistant to malaria since the sickle-red-blood-cells are not conducive to the parasites – in areas where malaria is common there is a survival value in carrying the sickle-cell genes. In other words, malaria gives you sickle-cell which makes you resistant to malaria; the difference is malaria kills you quickly and painfully – within hours or days – sickle-cell kills you slowly and painfully – over years…your choice.

Thalassaemia or Thalassemia: Another well-documented set of mutations found in the human genome associated with malaria are those involved in causing serious blood disorders known as Thalassaemia that have presumably also been selected in the course of human evolution.

Thalassaemia or Thalassemia will be the subject or topic of separate postings:

In brief:

Most species of female mosquitoes also carry the filariasis worm which is a parasite that causes a disfiguring condition often referred to as elephantiasis, characterized by a great swelling of several parts of the body – more than 60 million people live with a filariasis disability, worldwide – that 60 million was a guess at best. Viral diseases such as yellow fever and dengue fever are transmitted mostly by Aedes aegypti mosquitoes and other viral diseases like epidemic polyarthritis: any type of arthritis that involves five or more joints; an inflammation of two, three or four joints is an oligoarthritis…are transmitted by mosquitoes

Rift-Valley fever and Ross-River fever, St. Louis encephalitis, West Nile virus, La Crosse encephalitis, Japanese encephalitis, and several other encephalitis-type diseases are carried by different mosquitoes. Eastern Equine Encephalitis and Western Equine Encephalitis: relating to, or affecting, horses, donkeys, and zebras – occur in the USA where they cause diseases in humans and some bird species. EEE and WEE are regarded as two of the most serious mosquito-borne diseases in the USA because of the high mortality rate. Symptoms range from mild flu-like illness to encephalitis, coma and death. Viruses that are carried and transmitted by arthropods such as mosquitoes, ticks, and fleas are known collectively as arboviruses – viruses transmitted by blood-sucking creatures such as mosquitoes, ticks and fleas. Arboviruses contain RNA, exist in over 500 species, and include the viruses that cause encephalitis, yellow fever, and dengue fever.

Late complications: If someone with a benign form of malaria is untreated, anaemia and an enlarged spleen may develop after days. The list of diseases transmitted by mosquitoes or resulting from, or caused by, malaria is too long to include here

Msn-Encarta – Arthropod: animal with a hard, outer skeleton and a jointed body and limbs. Arthropods make up a phylum of invertebrates that includes insects, such as mosquitoes, fleas, ants, beetles, and butterflies; crustaceans, such as lobsters, shrimps, and crabs; and arachnids, including scorpions, spiders, and ticks. In terms of sheer numbers and the variety of niches they fill, arthropods are the most successful animals on Earth. More than one million arthropod species have been identified, more than 20 times the number of known fish, amphibian, reptile, bird, and mammal species combined. This figure is considered a low estimate of the phylum's actual size because many arthropod species have yet to be discovered and documented. Some scientists suggest the number of arthropod species in tropical forests alone may approach six to nine million. Arthropods have adapted to life on land, at sea, and in the air. They occupy an array of habitats, from scorching deserts and scalding hot springs to snow-capped mountains and frigid fjords. As plant pollinators, nutrient recyclers, and prey for other animals, they are essential members of the web of life. If all arthropods suddenly were to perish, thousands of animals and plants that depend on their services for survival would soon vanish as well. Many arthropods, including shrimps, lobsters, and crabs, are harvested as food for people throughout the world. Other arthropods provide the ingredients for fabric-dyes, wood-preservatives, and medicines. Members of one arthropod class in particular, insects, can be formidable pests, devouring crops, destroying wood structures, and spreading malaria and other life-threatening diseases – On to 918…