Malaria
* The World Health Organization groups the Middle East into its Eastern Mediterranean region and includes the Russian Federation republics with Europe.
Annual death toll:
1.1 million
Infection:
Malaria is a tropical disease caused by a parasite that attacks red blood cells. The parasite invades the cell and begins multiplying, causing the cell to rupture. There are four types of malaria, Falciparum malaria being the most serious.
Symptoms:
A malarial attack may occur 8-12 days after infection and last 4-10 hours. It consists successively of shaking and chills, fever and severe headache, and profuse sweating. May also cause anemia, jaundice, kidney failure, seizures, mental confusion and coma.
Transmission:
Malaria is spread by mosquitoes. They ingest the microscopic parasites from an infected person's blood and the disease is passed to the next person bitten.
At risk:
Anyone can become infected with malaria. An estimated 300 million to 400 million people are infected each year. It is most devastating in sub-Saharan Africa, where it accounts for 1 in 5 of all childhood deaths.
Treatment:
Chloroquine.
Resistance:
Increasingly resistant to Chloroquine.
Vaccine:
None.