What is Malaria?

       According to the NIH website,  malaria is a parasitic disease that can be contacted through mosquito bites. The disease can be contacted when a human is bitten by an infected anopheles mosquito. When the parasite enters the body, it affects the red blood cells which burst open and subsequently affect other red blood cells. The signs and symptoms of malaria infection include fever, shaking, chills, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, joint pain and discomfort and anemia but are not limited to these.

     The parasites stay in the red blood cells where they multiply for about 48-72 hours before the red blood cells burst open. The bursting of the red blood cells increases the amount of free hemoglobin in the blood stream. An individual might start to experience the signs and symptoms of malaria as early as eight days or as late as one year after infection. 

     According to the CDC, there are about 300-500 million cases of malaria each year and approximately a million people die from it every year. A large number of the people that die from Malaria are children. The disease is a major public health issue in tropical climates. Some of the measures used to try to prevent malaria infection in tropical climates include use of mosquito nets and spraying of insecticides. However, an increased resistance to insecticides is being seen.

References

1. Dugdale , D. C., & Vyas, J. M. National Institute of Health, (2011). Malaria. Retrieved from website: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001646/

2. Global Health, Department of Parasitic Diseases. Center For Disease Control, (2010). Where malaria occurs. Retrieved from website: http://www.cdc.gov/malaria/about/distribution.html