Treating malaria

Preventing malaria

There are two types of preventive measures:

• Avoiding mosquito bites - reducing the risk of infection. Such prophylactic measures include avoidance of exposure to insects, the use of insecticide-impregnated bed nets and repellents, and control of the mosquito vector by spraying and drainage of habitats.
• Chemoprophylaxis - using drugs to prevent symptomatic infection after transmission has occurred. The aim is to build up plasma levels of antimalarial compounds to kill erythrocytic stages of the parasite and thus prevent clinical disease.

However, effective chemoprophylaxis is often difficult to achieve, largely because of poor compliance. Current chemoprophylactic therapies present a number of drawbacks, mainly related to the complexity of the drug regimen, and to adverse events. Residents and long-stay travellers in a risk area rarely use long-term chemoprophylaxis - mainly because of adverse events related to antimalarial drugs.²⁴ Poor compliance and growing resistance of the parasite to various drugs mean that prophylaxis often fails and acute treatment becomes necessary.