Malaria’s Impact on the Current Society
Malaria’s Impact Worldwide
Figure 41. Malaria parasite connecting to a red blood cell
Malaria killed an estimated 627,000 individuals in Sub-Saharan Africa in 2020, with the majority being young children. Over the recent decade, an increase in the number of partners and funding has accelerated malaria control efforts. This expansion of treatments has saved millions of lives worldwide and reduced malaria mortality by 36% between 2010 and 2020, raising expectations and plans for elimination and, eventually, eradication.
Malaria is usually found in impoverished tropical and subtropical regions of the world. Malaria is a primary cause of sickness and death in many of the nations where it exists. Young children, who have not yet gained immunity to malaria, and pregnant women, whose immunity has been reduced by pregnancy, are the most susceptible populations in places with high transmission. Malaria still has tremendous economic repercussions for people, families, communities, and nations.
Geography
Figure 42. Malaria distribution map
Malaria is most common in impoverished, tropical, and subtropical regions of the world. Africa has been hit the worst by a mix of issues, including:
1. High transmission caused by a highly effective mosquito (Anopheles gambiae complex)
2. Plasmodium falciparum is the most common parasite species, and it is also the most likely to cause severe malaria and mortality
3. Local meteorological conditions frequently allow the transmission to occur all year.
4. Malaria control initiatives have been hampered by a lack of resources and socioeconomic instability.
Malaria is a less common cause of mortality in other parts of the world, but it can cause significant sickness and incapacity, particularly in several South American and South Asian nations.
Statistics
Malaria is one of the world's most serious public health issues. It is a significant cause of death and sickness in many impoverished countries, particularly among small children and pregnant women.
Figure 43. A pregnant woman having a blood smear taken at an antenatal clinic at the Maela Camp in Thailand near the Burmese Border
According to the World Malaria Report 2021:
1. In 87 nations and territories, over half of the world's population lives in malaria-risk zones.
2. In 2020, malaria caused an estimated 241 million clinical episodes and 627,000 deaths. An estimated 95% of deaths in 2020 were in the WHO African Region.
Each year, around 2,000 cases of malaria are identified in the United States. The great majority of cases in the United States are among tourists and immigrants returning from malaria-endemic countries, many of which are in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.
Direct expenditures (such as disease, treatment, and early mortality) are projected to reach at least $12 billion per year. The cost of missing economic growth is several times higher.
Latest News: Misdiagnosis Leads to Missed Treatment
It has been reported by Sarah Newey, a global health security correspondent of The Telegraph, last month that a third of severe malaria diagnoses in Sub-Saharan African children may be incorrect, depriving children of diseases that mirror malaria of necessary treatment. Poor diagnoses for diseases such as bacterial sepsis may be skewing malaria case numbers and death tolls, according to a letter published in the Lancet in September and signed by specialists from the United Kingdom, Thailand, Vietnam, and Kenya.
Figure 44. The letter published in Lancet
“The problem is that because malaria is so common, and because we have a test, and because we don’t have a test for most of the other things that give you a fever, then we overdiagnosed malaria,” explained Nick White of Mahidol University and the University of Oxford, a letter co-author.
For this reason, the WHO advises that all children with severe malaria receive both antibiotics and antimalarials—but this isn't always the case, particularly in rural areas.
According to Daniel Chandramohan of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, the true killer, regardless of the source of disease, is poor access to care, particularly in rural areas.