World Malaria Day 2022 — “Harness Innovation to Reduce the Malaria Disease Burden and Save Lives”

World Malaria Day is celebrated on April 25 to eradicate malaria transmission, which begins with a malarial fever, and therefore to the end of malaria.

Highlights:

World Malaria Day is celebrated on April 25 every year
The global campaign emboldens everyone to draw efforts to reduce the burden and death from malaria
The 2022 theme for the World Malaria Day is “Harness innovation to reduce the malaria disease burden and save lives”

World Malaria Day is observed on April 25 every year to attract global efforts toward the end of malaria. The day encourages worldwide campaigns for reducing the suffering and death from malaria ().

WHO Member States established this global event in 2007 during the World Health Assembly ().

Malaria - Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Prevention, Treatment
Malaria is caused by a parasite that enters blood through the bite of an infected mosquito. It is characterized by fever, vomiting, shivering, sweating and other symptoms.

‘World Malaria Day is celebrated every year on the 25th of April to reinforce global efforts towards a malaria-free world and save lives.’
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What is Malaria?

Malaria is a life-threatening, acute febrile illness transmitted through the bites of infected female Anopheles mosquitoes ().

There are almost five Plasmodium parasites that cause malaria in humans among which the two most threatful species are P. falciparum and P. vivax. Others include P. malariae, P. ovale, and P. knowlesi ().

Quiz on Malaria
Malaria is a common parasitic disease of the tropics, resulting in a million deaths every year. It is most commonly found in tropical countries. The symptoms of malaria include fever with chills, headache, muscle aches, tiredness, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Malaria fatalities can be reduced if they are detected early and treated appropriately

Burden of Malaria

Malaria is a devastating illness that has affected almost 241 million people in 2020 with estimated death being 627,000 in 85 countries. Despite its high burden, it is a completely preventable and curable disease, if proper measures are adopted ().

To achieve the WHO’s Global Technical Strategy for Malaria targets by 2030, WHO has broadened the use of the RTS,S malaria vaccine (first vaccine against P. falciparum) in October 2021 for young children in moderate and high transmission areas ().

Similar to RTS,S,there are several innovations and scientific breakthroughs mandated for ending the malaria burden of the world ().

Malaria - Protection Strategies
Malaria is a dangerous disease with lethal consequences that requires protective measures for prevention and control of malaria in endemic regions of the world.

World Malaria Day Theme

The theme this year, 2022 is “Harness innovation to reduce the malaria disease burden and save lives” ().

Despite technological advancements, at present, there are a limited number of tools to tackle the burden of malaria. Moreover, the decreasing burden between 2000 and 2015 worldwide appears to have been halted in recent years ().

Hence, the WHO calls for urgent global innovation and investments in various novel malaria control approaches such as antimalarial medications, diagnostic tests, and other vector control strategies and tools to achieve its 2030 targets of the global technical strategy for malaria().

People With Blood Group A Prone to Malaria
Blood cells of those with blood group A produce a protein which forms clumps and increases the severity of the disease.

Malaria Campaigns

Various organizations and institutes work together for community-focused interventions against malaria. This includes various malaria elimination programs, public education, vaccination campaigns, and implementing the use of control measures like mosquito repellents and insecticide-treated nets ().

The scientific community also affirms several innovations in the pipeline (). The various measures implemented by the WHO to invite global action towards the end of malaria are ():

Step up innovation in the fight against malaria.
Expand access to the tools we have now.
Expand the use of the first malaria vaccine, RTS,S.
Strengthen country ownership.
Ensure resilient and equitable health systems.
Tailor responses to the local setting.
Improve surveillance systems.

Need for Global Funds

Social movements (by the global partnership) like Roll Back Malaria (RBM) and its partnerships have mandated the need for a Global Fund of at least US$18 billion for malaria programs between 2024 and 2026 ().

This can be reinforced through global community support using the theme “ADVANCE EQUITY. BUILD RESILIENCE. END MALARIA” and ensure ():

to reduce cases by 66% by 2026 and deaths by 62% between 2020 and 2026.
to increase coverage of insecticide-treated nets in Africa by 19% by 2026.
that all eligible pregnant women receive at least three doses of preventive malaria treatment by 2025.
to treat 500 million malaria cases through public sector systems between 2021 and 2026.
to eliminate malaria from an additional six countries.

Global Events

Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute has hosted a virtual World Malaria Day Symposium “Malaria in Africa: Translating Science into Practice” on 25 April 2022 ().

The National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme, Directorate of Health Services on 25 April 2022 has organized a state-level function at the conference hall of Institute Menezes Braganza, Panaji.

One may even join the global effort through social media using the hashtags #EndMalaria, #FightforWhatCounts, and #ZeroMalariaStartsWithMe ().

Join the global fight against malaria to create a malaria-free world in the future.

References :

World Malaria Day 2022 - (https://sdg.iisd.org/events/world-malaria-day-2022/)
World Malaria Day 2022 - (https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/36377/world-malaria-day-2022)
World Malaria Day 2022 - (https://www.who.int/campaigns/world-malaria-day/2022)
World Malaria Day 2022 - (https://www.who.int/westernpacific/news-room/events/detail/2022/04/25/western-pacific-events/world-malaria-day-2022)
World Malaria Day April 25th 2022 - (https://endmalaria.org/worldmalariaday2022)
Symposium - (https://malaria.jhsph.edu/conferences/2022-world-malaria-day-symposium/)
World Malaria Day on April 25 - (https://www.goa.gov.in/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/World-Malaria-Day-On-April-25.pdf)

Source-Medindia