Plan to Reduce Malaria and Prevent its Reintroduction
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Countries of the Americas Adopt Plan to Reduce Malaria and Prevent its Reintroduction
Washington, D.C., 30 September 2011 (PAHO/WHO) – Health officials from countries throughout the Americas have pledged new efforts to reduce the burden of malaria and to protect progress already made against the disease through a strategy and plan of action approved during the 51st Directing Council meeting of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).
In 2009, the Americas reported a total of 564,451 confirmed cases of malaria and 118 deaths. The figures represent a 52% decline in cases and a 69% reduction in deaths since 2000. The improvements were the result of a series of strategies and programs carried out by ministries of health and international cooperation agencies within the framework of the Regional Strategic Plan for Malaria in the Americas 2006–2010.
Joint efforts by countries and collaborating institutions have helped 18 of the hemisphere’s 21 malaria-endemic countries achieve international targets for reducing the burden of malaria. Nine countries reported reductions of more than 75%, thereby meeting the targets of both the Roll Back Malaria Partnership and the Millennium Development Goals.
Malaria experts say the continuing decline in cases and
deaths makes it even more important to protect current
achievements by preventing reintroduction of the disease,
and to move toward malaria elimination in areas where it is
feasible.
Malaria is caused by the Plasmodium
parasite, transmitted via mosquito bites. In the human body,
the parasites multiply in the liver and then infect red
blood cells. Symptoms include fever, headache and vomiting,
and usually appear 10 to 15 days after the mosquito bite. If
not treated, malaria can become life-threatening by
disrupting the blood supply to vital organs. In many parts
of the world, the parasites have developed resistance to a
number of malaria medicines.
The regional plan of action
approved this week calls on governments to step up efforts
in malaria prevention, surveillance, early detection, and
outbreak containment; to improve vector management; and to
promote universal access to prompt, accurate, and quality
malaria diagnosis followed by rapid treatment with effective
antimalarial medicines.
The countries have committed
to achieve the following targets by 2015:
• A 75%
reduction in malaria morbidity
o A 25% reduction in
malaria-related deaths
Implementation of malaria
elimination activities in areas where elimination is
feasible (particularly Mesoamerica and the Southern Cone)
A reversal of the trend in those countries where
malaria cases increased between 2000 and 2010 (particularly
the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and Venezuela) < >Prevention
of the reintroduction of malaria endemicity in countries
already declared malaria-free.• Malaria prevention,
surveillance, and early detection and containment of
outbreaks
• Integrated vector
management
• Malaria diagnosis and
treatment
• Advocacy, communication and
collaborative partnerships
• Health systems
strengthening, strategic planning, monitoring and
evaluation, operations research, and country-level
capacity-building.
The PAHO Directing Council is made up of the ministers of health of PAHO/WHO member countries and meets each year in Washington, D.C., to set health policies and establish priorities for PAHO’s technical cooperation programs and public health collaboration.
LINKS:
Strategy and Plan of Action for Malaria: http://new.paho.org/hq/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_download&gid=14503&Itemid=
51st Directing Council Blog: http://devserver.paho.org/blogs/cd51/index.php?
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