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Malaria in Africa: a cycle of death and debilitation

Mosquito

During the wet season, the malaria mosquito (Anopheles) breeds in pools of still water.

Miriam

Little Mariam had luck on her side. She was 7 months old when she was brought into the health centre in Bredjing refugee camp in Chad last spring, vomiting, and feverish. The doctor suspected malaria, tested her and immediately started treating her with anti-malaria pills. By morning, her temperature was nearly normal; the diarrhea that was dehydrating her had stopped. She opened her eyes and smiled at her mother who had waited anxiously all night beside her mat. Mariam’s life was saved. But there are so many others like her who need your help. Your donation can save lives

UNHCR'S Strategic Paln for Malaria Control

UNHCR'S Strategic Plan for Malaria Control
New tools for effective treatment and prevention of malaria have been developed: rapid diagnostic tests, quick-acting antimalarial drugs, long-lasting insecticidal nets, and intermittent preventive treatment in pregnancy. A global movement for improved malaria control has emerged.
Download the report (PDF, 248 KB)

The problem

During the wet season, the malaria mosquito (Anopheles) breeds in pools of still water.

UNHCR Interventions

Prevention

distribution of long-lasting pyrethrum-impregnated bednets.
Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS) of refugee shelters before rains commence.
preventative treatments administered to vulnerable groups – children under 5 years, pregnant women, severely malnourished, HIV+ etc.

Mother and child The adult mosquito feeds on the blood of an infected human being and becomes a carrier of the malaria parasite.

Community education programs to provide instruction on bednet use and reduce environmental risks.

refugee camp site selection upwind of potential breeding sites.
adequate site drainage.
established supply chain or stockpile of anti-malarial treatments (mostly Artemisinin-based Combination Therapies (ACT) to overcome parasite resistance).

medical treatment The mosquito bites a second person, injecting infected saliva to prevent coagulation while feeding. The malaria plasmodia invades another human body - average incubation period 9-13 days.

Diagnosis

in emergency settings: routine screening for P. Falciparum malaria only, using rapid diagnostic tests (Paracheck). Weekly screening of severely malnourished refugees.
in stable settings: laboratory testing established.
negotiation for refugee access to host community health services.
monitoring and control of malaria outbreaks (slide positivity rates).

Rising concentrations of parasite in the blood bring on a malaria crisis with high fever, headache, nausea and other flu-like symptoms. In vulnerable groups, the untreated disease can quickly progress to coma and death.

Treatment

administration of Artemisinin-based Combination Therapy (ACT), currently the most effective frontline treatment for non-complicated malaria.
clinical case management of severe malaria.

In survivors, the parasites retreat to the liver to begin a new lifecycle. Acute symptoms may recur over several years, coinciding with the parasite’s active adult phase. Prolonged infection can lead to anaemia, spleen rupture and kidney failure.

distribution of long-lasting impregnated bednets to all refugees returning to endemic areas.
community education on seeking treatment and effective bednet use.
negotiation for returnee access to community health services.

Sierra Lione

UNHCR tests anti-malaria tool in Sierra Leone's refugee camps

FREETOWN, Sierra Leone – In a bid to fight malaria among refugees in West Africa, the UN refugee agency has started testing new anti-malaria tools in two refugee camps in southern Sierra Leone.

Under a project co-funded by the European Commision's Humanitarian Aid Office, more than 16,000 refugees in Largo and Tobanda camps are taking part in a trial of insecticide-treated plastic sheeting. The new sheeting is designed to provide not just shelter but also protection from malaria and other vector-borne diseases. Vector-borne diseases are transmitted from an infected person to another through insects or animals that serve as intermediary hosts.

$286 can buy 50 long lasting impregnated bednets, giving refugee families long-term protection against vector mosquitoes.

$536 can provide rapid malaria diagnosis (Paracheck) for 500 refugees.

$1134 can finance a safe Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS) program for 350 refugee families, dramatically reducing mosquito populations.

$2725 can buy an entire Emergency Health Kit, containing enough basic medical supplies for 10,000 people over three months.