Is malaria present in Kruger National Park, South Africa?

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QUESTION

I am holidaying in South Africa in January. 2014 including a visit to Kruger national park. Do I need anti malarial medication?

ANSWER
According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), malaria is present in Kruger National Park:

Country Name Malaria in Country Drug Resistance Malaria Type Prophylaxis for Areas with Malaria
South Africa Present in the northeastern KwaZulu-Natal Province as far south as the Tugela River, Limpopo (Northern) Province, and Mpumalanga Province.ﾠPresent in Kruger National Park. Chloroquine P. falciparum 90%, P. vivax 5%, P. ovale 5% Atovaquone-proguanil, doxycycline, or mefloquine

 

 

Malaria Statistics in Limpopo in Malamulele Town, South Africa

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QUESTION

What is the statistics of malaria from 2008 to 2011 in limpopo im malamulele town?

ANSWER

I think your best bet to get access to specific statistics for a particular town is to contact the local district health office directly, or contact an organization that works in the area on health issues. As far as I know, there are no publicly available malaria statistics for Malamulele town on the Internet. One organization I have found which works in the region is Sakhiwo Health Solutions, a company which appears to be involved in a malaria mitigation project in Malamulele. Their website is sakhiwo.com.

Malaria in South Africa

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QUESTION

What are the high, low and no-risk areas for malaria in South Africa?

ANSWER

Malaria has been successfully controlled in many parts of South Africa, with the result that most of the country is not at risk for malaria transmission. However, some pockets of higher risk remain in the north-eastern corner of South Africa (north-eastern KwaZulu-Natal, with the southern-most limit of transmission corresponding with the Tugela River, Limpopo (Northern) Province, and Mpumalanga Province). Malaria is also transmitted in Kruger National Park.

Malaria Statistics in South Africa

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QUESTION

What are the statistics of malaria in South Africa from 2002-2011 for males and females?

ANSWER

It is difficult to find statistics across time that are detailed enough to distinguish between the sexes. However, I have found a website collates information about malaria in southern Africa specifically, and this link will take you to a figure on that site which shows the number of cases for three regions of South Africa for almost the last 20 years: Malaria in Southern Africa.

Another source to look at is the World Health Organisation World Malaria Report from 2011, which for the first time, presented information on malaria cases and deaths from 99 individual countries. The website for that report, which can be freely downloaded can be accessed via this link: WHO World Malaria Report 2011.

Malaria in Limpopo, South Africa

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QUESTION

In which year did malaria spread in Limpopo?

ANSWER

Malaria has likely been in the southern part of Africa for many hundreds, if not thousands, of years. In recent times, control initiatives have been in place in areas of malaria transmission in South Africa since 1945, reducing the incidence of malaria in many places. Other than that, this paper, freely accessible via the Malaria Journal, reports on the incidence, number of cases and number of deaths reported as caused by malaria between 1998 and 2007: Gerritsen et al., 2008. In addition, this site, by the South African government in Limpopo, contains more information about malaria in the area: Limpopo Malaria Control Program.

Malaria in Southern Africa

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QUESTION

Which areas in southern africa harbour malaria?

ANSWER

Most of Namibia, Botswana and South Africa does not harbor malaria, either because it is too cold, too dry, or control measures have successfully eliminated transmission. However, malaria transmission is found in virtually all parts of Zimbabwe and southern Mozambique.

In addition, pockets of malaria transmission can be found in parts of the other countries of southern Africa, namely in northern Namibia (provinces of Kunene, Ohangwena, Okavango, Omaheke, Omusati, Oshana, Oshikoto, and Otjozondjupa and in the Caprivi Strip), in northern Botswana (Central, Chobe, Ghanzi, Northeast, and Northwest provinces) and also in the north-eastern corner of South Africa (north-eastern KwaZulu-Natal, with the southern-most limit of transmission corresponding with the Tugela River, Limpopo (Northern) Province, and Mpumalanga Province). Malaria is also transmitted in Kruger National Park.

Malaria in KwaZulu Natal

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QUESTION

How many people are infected by malaria in KZN?

ANSWER

By “KNZ” I assume you mean KwaZulu Natal (for the benefit of other readers, this is a region of South Africa, in the north-eastern portion of the country). KZN is one of the few parts of South Africa that experiences malaria transmission, though effective control measures have reduced its impact as a public health threat.

Up until 1996, South African policy had been to use DDT (even though it was a banned substance) to control mosquito populations, and malaria levels had correspondingly been low. However, after cessation of spraying with DDT, the number of malaria cases increased, to a high of over 40,000 cases in the 1999/2000 malaria season (in KZN, malaria is most commonly transmitted during the wet summer months, from November to May). Since then, the use of DDT as an insecticide has been reintroduced (along with other public health measures, such as switching to artemisinin-based combination therapies for first-line malaria treatment), and the burden of malaria has plummeted.

The most recent data I could find reported less than 3500 cases for the 2001/2002 malaria season, and zero cases in 2002/2003 (though the data I found were only up to February 2003). Efforts to coordinate malaria control between South Africa, Mozambique and Swaziland have also contributed to the success of reducing malaria transmission in the region.

Malaria’s Impact on Tourism

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QUESTION

How is malaria’s impact on tourism?

ANSWER

These days, with effective preventative measures such as prophylactic medication and long-lasting insecticide treated bednets, the risk of contracting malaria as a tourist is greatly reduced. However, there is some evidence that the risk of contracting malaria is a deterrent for some tourists, particularly during high transmission periods of the year, in certain places.

For example, in South Africa, a group of researchers surveyed tourist facilities in KwaZulu-Natal and found that risk of contracting malaria was the major cause behind lack of bed occupancy. Improving tourists’ awareness of how the disease is transmitted and ways of preventing infection will go a long way to reducing the negative impact of the disease on the tourism industry in malarial countries.

Malaria in Namibia or South Africa

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QUESTION

Is there a risk of catching malaria in Namibia or South Africa

ANSWER

Yes. According to the CDC, malaria is present in the following areas of Namibia: Kunene, Ohangwena, Okavango, Omaheke, Omusati, Oshana, Oshikoto, and Otjozondjupa and the Caprivi Strip. In addition, malaria is present in South Africa in northeastern KwaZulu-Natal Province as far south as the Tugela River, Limpopo (Northern) Province, and Mpumalanga Province. It is also present in Kruger National Park.

If you are visiting these areas, it is recommended you take prophylactic medication (such as doxycycline, mefloquine or atovaquone-proguanil) and sleep under a bednet. Other preventative measures against mosquito bites, such as wearing long-sleeved clothing and insecticide on exposed skin (especially in the evenings and at night) are also recommended.

Are Anti-malaria pills necessary if no mosquito bites?

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QUESTION

We had a weekend in the Kruger Park and all of us took anti malaria pills beforehand. None of us was bitten or even saw a mosquito, do we need to carry on taking them for so long?

ANSWER

Since you say “so long”, I assume you are either taking doxycycline or Lariam, both of which are taken for four weeks after leaving the malarial area. Unless you are experiencing severe side effects, it is always recommended to continue taking prophylactic medication for the full course, the reason being that the malaria parasite has a latent period of up to a few weeks, and the prophylactics only kill the parasite after this latent stage. Even though you didn’t see any mosquitoes, the possibility remains that you got bitten and did not notice – ultimately, you can weigh up the slight inconvenience of taking the pills for a while longer versus the slight risk, but enormous inconvenience of getting malaria!

Since you have taken malaria prophylactics, please take a moment to fill out the Malaria Medication Side-effects Survey: Treatment and Prophylaxis!

Thank you!