WHO warns of increasing malaria danger

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned that the malaria epidemic, which has already affected an estimated 276,000 people in the northern highland districts of Burundi, could affect hundreds of thousands more with the imminent rainy season. The agency’s Roll Back Malaria (RBM) secretariat announced on Friday that its partner organisations had organised urgent shipments of drugs to Burundi to treat those affected by the epidemic. The epidemic is thought to have been sparked by the October rains. WHO has arranged for the delivery of enough drugs to treat 160,000 young children, with more aid promised. “Mobile clinics are treating patients in 10 provinces and homes are being sprayed with insecticide,” the RBM statement said. “A massive information campaign is also underway to encourage people to use insecticide treated mosquito nets where possible and to ensure they take the right anti-malarial drugs at the right time,” it added. Data from clinics in Kayanza province, northwestern Burundi, in mid-November detailed 21,000 cases of malaria among a total population of 200,400 - an increase of more than 500 percent compared to the same period in 1999. A total of 249,239 cases were reported by mid-November across the 10 districts, including: 12,261 in Cibitoke, 72,906 in Gitega, 36,335 in Karuzi, 22,100 in Kayanza, 10,776 in Kirundo, 7,645 in Makamba, 9,589 in Muramvya, 23,993 in Muyinga, 24,814 in Mwaro and 29,239 in Ngozi. By the end of November, the overall number had grown to 276,000, with 115 officially reported deaths, RBM stated. Experts fear that the four month rainy season, which starts in January, could herald a massive increase in cases. In previous years, malaria cases have doubled during this time of year.