Malaria
Malaria is a serious infection spread through the bite of an Anopheles mosquito infected with malaria parasites. These mosquitoes are not found in Aotearoa New Zealand. You can only get malaria overseas, typically in tropical and subtropical regions of Africa, Asia, the Americas and Western Pacific. Left untreated, you may get very sick and even die.
How malaria spreads
Malaria is spread through the bite of a mosquito infected with malaria parasites. Five different parasites can infect mosquitoes and can cause malaria. These mosquitoes bite between dawn and dusk — most commonly between the hours of 9pm and 5am.
It cannot be spread from person to person. But because malaria parasites are found in the blood cells of an infected person, it can be passed on through:
- blood transfusion
- organ transplants
- sharing needles or syringes contaminated with blood.
If you are pregnant you can also pass malaria on to their pēpi before or during birth.
Symptoms of malaria
For most people, symptoms of malaria start 9 days to 4 weeks after they have been infected. Symptoms include:
- fever
- headache
- chills
- muscle aches
- tiredness
- feeling sick (nausea) and throwing up (vomiting)
- runny poos (diarrhoea)
- yellowing of the skin or eyes (jaundice).
Symptoms are often delayed by the use of anti-malaria drugs (antimalarial prophylaxis).
In some cases, malaria can come back again after you have recovered. This can be from several months to 4 years after you were infected.
Malaria caused by the 'Plasmodium falciparum' paraiste can be especially serious, and if it is not treated quickly may cause:
- kidney failure
- seizures
- mental confusion
- coma
- death.
Diagnosing malaria
If you think you have malaria it is important you get treatment quickly.
If you have been to an area with malaria in the past 12 months, and you have fever or a flu-like illness you should be tested for the disease.
Your healthcare provider will take a blood test to confirm if you have malaria, and what type.
The role of public health
Malaria is a notifiable disease. This means that healthcare providers or laboratories will inform public health when someone has it. This way public health can investigate where you may have been infected.
Public health also has a role in making sure exotic mosquitoes do not become established in Aotearoa New Zealand.
Treating malaria
There are several medications to treat malaria. What medication you are given depends on:
- how sick you are
- what type of malaria you have
- which country you were in when you were infected
- your age
- if you are pregnant.
Preventing malaria
If you are travelling to a country with malaria, talk to your healthcare provider to find out what precautions you should take. Try to do this 4 to 6 weeks before you travel. Some medicines need to be started before you leave Aotearoa.
As well as taking the right medicines to prevent malaria, it is also important to prevent being bitten by mosquitoes.
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