Public Awareness on Malaria

What is Malaria? Malaria is a disease characterized by fever which is caused by the bite of female anopheles mosquito. In Nagaland, two types of malaria are found: malaria caused by Plasmodium vivax and malaria caused by Plasmodium falciparum. Falciparum malaria is the more severe of the two. What are the signs and symptoms of Malaria? • Fever with chills and rigor • Associated with headache and vomiting • Sweating after each episode of fever • Feeling of weakness and tiredness • Danger signs of severe malaria are: High fever with change in behavior, consciousness, drowsiness, inability to sit or walk; repeated vomiting; passage of small quantity urine/no urine/black urine; severe diarrhea and dehydration; unexplained heavy bleeding from nose, gums, or other sites. How is Malaria Spread? • When an infected female anopheles mosquito bites a healthy human being, the parasite spreads in the body of the individual and the person gets sick after a few days. • When a mosquito bites such a malaria patient, the parasite enters the mosquito with the blood meal and multiplies there. Where does the malaria transmitting mosquito breed? • Mosquito breeds in stagnant water. The female mosquito lays eggs on the surface of water. After a few days, larva emerges from the eggs which grow into adult mosquitoes. • Mosquito breeding places in the cities are: Overhead open water tanks, broken utensils, discarded tyres, utensils without covers, construction sites, clogged drains, potholes, etc. • Mosquito breeding sites in the villages are: Paddy fields, ponds covered with grass/swamp, unused wells, wheel tracks, animal hoof marks, peri-domestic water collections. How do we care for patients who are suspected to be suffering from Malaria? • First and most important is to do a blood test to diagnose malaria. Testing facilities are widely and freely available all over Nagaland. Rapid test kits are available which can detect falciparum malaria on the spot. • If malaria is confirmed, early and complete treatment is essential. Medicines for both types of malaria are made available for free. How can we control malaria? • Remove breeding site (stagnant water bodies) of mosquitoes as stated above • Fit wire-netting (screening) of doors and windows of houses • Use mosquito nets. Insecticide treated bed nets are available which not only act as physical barriers, but also reduce mosquito population. • Use mosquito repellent cream or coil/liquidator • Wear long sleeve clothes when going outdoors in mosquito infested areas • Rear larvivorous fishes (which eats up mosquito larva) in stagnant water bodies • Sread awareness on control of vector and to seek early medical care.

National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme Directorate of Health and Family Welfare Nagaland: Kohima (Issued in public interest)