During the course of our existence as Africans, at one point or the other, we must have fallen sick with this deadly sickness “Malaria”.
Malaria has killed thousands of people and most especially children. Malaria is transmitted by an infected female mosquito that contains a parasite called plasmodium that travels and attacks the red blood cells.
The malaria parasite basically attacks the red blood cells and causes a break down in the human system. It’ll interest you to know that the parasite that attacks the body exists in four forms:
i. Plasmodium vivax
ii. P. ovale
iii. P. malariae
iv. P. falciparum aka Congenital malaria can be transferred from mother to child.
Do you know one can contact malaria through the following means;
- Shared syringe and needles
- A blood transfusion
- Organ donation/ transplant
If the above means are contaminated, then an introduction to a new healthy body will contaminate it too. Malaria has several symptoms though sometimes certain people are asymptomatic. The parasite can stay in the bloodstream for months dormant.
The most efficient way to diagnose malaria is through blood testing that shows:
- If you have malaria
- The kind of malaria
- If any internal organ has been damaged
- And finally if the body is anaemic
When diagnosed with malaria, it should not be taken slightly. This illness can lead to life threatening problems such as;
1. Growing of the veins of the cerebrum, or cerebral jungle fever
2. An aggregation of liquid in the lungs that messes breathing up, or pneumonic edema
3. Organ disappointment of the kidneys, liver, or spleen
4. Pallor because of the obliteration of red platelets
5. Low glucose
HealthLine gives the following procedures on how to prevent malaria.
There’s no vaccine available to prevent malaria. Talk to your doctor if you’re traveling to an area where malaria is common or if you live in such an area. You may be prescribed medications to prevent the disease.
These medications are the same as those used to treat the disease and should be taken before, during, and after your trip.
Talk to your doctor about long-term prevention if you live in an area where malaria is common. Sleeping under a mosquito net may help prevent being bitten by an infected mosquito. Covering your skin too.
Do not be deceived by the myth that malaria doesn’t kill african man. Anybody can get infected. Most cases happen in individuals who live in Africa so do not be deceived.
Individuals from other continents can become tainted when they travel or through a blood bonding (albeit this is extremely uncommon). Likewise, a contaminated mother can transfer malaria to her newborn child previously or during conveyance as earlier stated.
The campaign against malaria has been ongoing , to some extent, malaria has been wiped out from many advanced nations with calm environments.
Notwithstanding, the infection is still significantly a medical issue in many agricultural and developing nations, in tropical and subtropical pieces of the world.
However, Malaria doesn’t happen in warm environments. For instance, malaria has been wiped out in certain nations with warm environments, while a couple of different nations have no experience, since Anopheles mosquitoes are not found there.
Protect yourself from mosquitoes and stay safe.
