Research

SMS for Life: a pilot project to improve anti-malarial drug supply management in rural Tanzania using standard technology

Jim Barrington et al | 27 Oct 2023 | Malaria Journal

The SMS for Life pilot provided visibility of anti-malarial stock levels to support more efficient stock management using simple and widely available SMS technology, via a public-private partnership model that worked highly effectively.

Impact of national malaria control scale-up programmes in Africa: magnitude and attribution of effects

Richard Steketee & Carlos Campbell | 27 Oct 2023 | Malaria Journal

Several factors potentially have contributed to recent health improvement in African countries, but there is substantial evidence that achieving high malaria control intervention coverage, especially with ITNs and targeted IRS, has been the leading contributor to reduced child mortality.

The potential role of the educational system in addressing the effect of inadequate knowledge of mosquitoes on use of insecticide-treated nets in Ghana

Andreas Kudom & Ben Mensah | 15 Sep 2023 | Malaria Journal

The study reveals that respondents did not have adequate knowledge on the biology and behaviour of mosquitoes.

Effectiveness of five artemisinin combination regimens with or without primaquine in uncomplicated falciparum malaria: an open-label randomised trial

Frank Smithuis et al | 09 Sep 2023 | The Lancet Infectious Diseases

Artemisinin-combination therapy (ACT) is recommended as first-line treatment of falciparum malaria throughout the world, and fixed-dose combinations are preferred by WHO; whether a single gametocytocidal dose of primaquine should be added is unknown.

Antimalarial medicine diversion: stock-outs and other public health problems

Roger Bate, Kimberly Hess & Lorraine Mooney | 02 Sep 2023 | Research and Reports in Tropical Medicine

Antimalarial medicine diversion has been seen across numerous African markets and can lead to serious stock-outs in the public sector, which can be dangerous to countries with high burdens of disease. This study discusses the numbers of diverted antimalarial medicines from several samplings in Africa.

Assessing Website Pharmacy Drug Quality: Safer Than You Think?

Roger Bate & Kimberly Hess | 13 Aug 2023 | PLoS One

Internet-sourced drugs are often considered suspect. The WHO reports that drugs from websites that conceal their physical address are counterfeit in over 50 percent of cases; the FDA works with the NABP to regularly update a list of websites likely to sell drugs that are illegal or of questionable quality.

Reducing Plasmodium falciparum Malaria Transmission in Africa: A Model-Based Evaluation of Intervention Strategies

Jamie T. Griffin et al | 10 Aug 2023 | PloS Medicine

Over the past decade malaria intervention coverage has been scaled up across Africa. However, it remains unclear what overall reduction in transmission is achievable using currently available tools.

Who Gets Prompt Access to Artemisinin-Based Combination Therapy? A Prospective Community-Based Study in Children from Rural Kilosa, Tanzania

Daudi Simba et al | 10 Aug 2023 | PLoS One

Prompt access to ACT among febrile children was unacceptably low, due mainly to limited availability of subsidised ACT at the location where most caretakers sought care. There is urgent need to accelerate implementation of strategies that will ensure availability of ACT at an affordable price in remote rural areas, where the burden of malaria is highest.

Changes in the burden of malaria in sub-Saharan Africa

Wendy Prudhomme O'Meara et al | 29 Jul 2023 | The Lancet Infectious Diseases

The burden of malaria in countries in sub-Saharan Africa has declined with scaling up of prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. To assess the contribution of specific malaria interventions and other general factors in bringing about these changes, we reviewed studies that have reported recent changes in the incidence or prevalence of malaria in sub-Saharan Africa.

Patent Medicine Sellers: How Can They Help Control Childhood Malaria?

Rosamund Akuse et al | 19 Jul 2023 | Malaria Research and Treatment

Roll Back Malaria Initiative encourages participation of private health providers in malaria control because mothers seek care for sick children from them. This study investigated Patent Medicine Sellers (PMS) management of presumptive malaria in children in order to identify how they can assist malaria control.