Doc, I have malaria…why are you looking down there?

by Erik McLaughlin on

Medical News Today ran an interesting article covering the efficacy of rectally given anti-malarial medications. The purpose of using a suppository to deliver the medicine, Artemisinins, is a fairly new concept and can prove useful to prevent a life-threatening delay of intra-venous medications to combat severe forms of malaria.

The study looked at over 1000 patients and compared rectal administrations of several different medical compounds, all artemisinin derivatives. Interestingly, the article also compared these medicines with a standard treatment of quinine.

Ease of administration, portability and lack of special training for use are benefits of rectally administered medications. Delays in treatment of severe forms of malaria can result in death and travelers who are in remote locations and suffering from malaria might benefit from beginning this form of treatment, while seeking definitive medical care.

This might also serve as a reminder that the person trying to treat you for malaria in a remote area actually knows what they are doing when they are “checking down there”.

New Species of Malaria?

by Erik McLaughlin on

Malaria, the ever changing, always-evolving, world-sized killer, is responsible for 350-500-million infections and over 1,000,000 deaths per year. Further, 41% of the world’s population lives in a “malaria-risk zone.” Malaria is an illness that any traveler to the tropics needs to consider, and begin to plan for, months before a trip. And with a newly discovered species of malaria, things could only get worse.

For those of you keeping score, there are currently four types of malaria:

  • Plasmodium Ovale (uncommon outside Western Africa)
  • Plasmodium Malariae (low level infection possible for years)
  • Plasmodium Vivax (can lay dormant in liver)
  • Plasmodium Falciparum (the worst, most drug resistant)

A recent article in the Clinical Infectious Disease journal discussed a newly recognized type of malaria, not previously thought to cause illness in humans, called Plasmodium Knowlesi. The new species is thought to be frequently misdiagnosed as the more-benign form, Plasmodium Malariae. It’s also suggested to be as deadly as Plasmodium Falciparum, the worst, most drug-resistant species known today.

Malaysia suffered several deaths from what was believed to be the usually benign form of Plasmodium Malariae in recent years. Studies have shown that these cases were misdiagnosed and deaths resulted from this new species of malaria. Travelers to SE Asia, especially Malaysia, should ensure that, in the unfortunate event that they contract malaria, their diagnosis of Plasmodium Malariae is not the new, more dangerous Plasmodium Knowlesi. This is especially important if there is a high parasite load, meaning there is a lot of infection.

Always check with your primary health care provider to determine what is right for you!

Easy, Portable Bug Chaser

by Willy Volk on

When I lived in Zambia, keeping mosquitoes at bay was a challenge. The Peace Corps gave us DEET so heavy-duty that it melted everything it touched, which made slathering it on my legs pretty unappealing.

Soon, I began burning mosquito coils. Cheap and effective, after 3 years, I had little burn marks all over my home from where I had balanced them, forgotten them, and discovered them after they had branded every flat surface from my desk to my short wave. While I prided myself in simple, creative solutions while in Africa, for some reason, figuring out a better way to use these coils evaded me.

Alaska Outdoor Journal has brainstormed an obvious solution: hang the coil inside a metal screen. By cutting a 5″ x 12″ piece of metal screen and folding it in half, you can create a mosquito coil “sleeve,” which you can suspend from just about anything. For only a few cents, you can easily make some of these prior to your next camping trip.

Duh. Why didn’t I think of this?

Genetically Modified Mosquito Could Fight Malaria

by Willy Volk on

Malaria is spread by a parasite known as Plasmodium. Endemic in parts of Asia, Africa, and central and south America, the organism is passed to humans through the bite of the Anopheles mosquito. Each year, malaria makes 300 million people ill and causes 1,000,000+ deaths worldwide. An estimated 90% of malaria cases are in sub-Saharan Africa, where a child dies of malaria every 30 seconds. When I lived in sub-Saharan Africa, I regularly saw people fall ill to the disease. Many would remain bed-ridden for weeks; some would die. It was terrible.

Recently, US scientists claim to have created a genetically modified (GM) strain of malaria-resistant mosquito that is better able to survive than the ordinary disease-carrying insects. Why would researchers want to do this? They think that if they introduce GM insects into the wild, the GM populations will take over. As the regular mosquitoes die off, so, too, will malaria.

Before you get all Jurassic Park on me, let me point out that the researchers claim their studies are still at an early stage, and that it could be 10-20 years before engineered insects might be released into the environment. However, this is an idea worth considering, since it would alleviate the need for poor countries to combat an expensive, deadly disease. Moreover, it would mean travelers could stop sleeping under those annoying mosi nets.

Other ways for travelers to avoid mosquitoes:

Take Those Malaria Pills!!!

by Adrienne Wilson on

Let’s say you’re on your way to vaca abroad in
some foreign land where the food is strange and even a little smelly, they drive on the opposite side of the road and
perhaps the locals are less inclined to wear deodorant; these are all things you can live with upon your return home.
Now let’s also imagine someone told you about an infected mosquito carrying a tiny pet parasite that could potentially
grow and multiply in your liver, wreak havoc on your red blood cells and multiply some more after the mosquito has
dearly departed  from your flesh. Without the appropriate protective measures you could potentially die from what
seemed like the average insect bite. Chances are you’d break out in a cold-sweat thinking of the dangerous winged bug
and could even be ready to call off your great  adventure through the Amazon basin of Bolivia.

Please
don’t let the scenario above throw off the mood of your entire trip, but I bring this up because not enough people seem
to be taking antimalarial pills before trekking out into the unknown. The LA
Times has an article pointing out the number of malaria related
deaths (a million die annually) and how a third of travelers
tend to skip out on taking prescribed antimalarial drugs. It seems many aren’t thinking enough about the disease and
rely on insect repellent and bed netting to protect them when they should be used in addition to the pills. Other doctor
recommended suggestions include limiting outdoor activities from dusk to dawn when mosquitoes bite as well as wearing
long sleeve shirts and pants.

Antimalarial pills should be taken before, during and after visiting high risk areas. Additional malaria information can be found by
visiting the CDC.