QUESTION

Can i get malaria if i have sex with someone that has malaria?

ANSWER

No. Malaria cannot be sexually transmitted. In virtually all cases, malaria is transmitted through the bite of an infected mosquito, of the genus Anopheles. The mosquito passes the malaria parasite (there are several species which cause malaria in humans, all of the genus Plasmodium) through its saliva when it feeds on blood. Only female mosquitoes feed on blood, and so only females transmit malaria. The mosquito picks up malaria also by feeding on blood, this time from someone who already has the infection.

The only other ways to get infected with malaria are through blood transfusion, organ transplant and via the placenta during pregnancy (“congenital” malaria), and these are all very rare, particularly as blood and organ donors are now usually screened for malaria infection prior to transfusion or transplant.

If you have taken medications for malaria, please help Malaria.com by taking our Malaria Medication Side-effects Survey: Treatment and Prophylaxis. Thank you!