A Retrospective Study on the Burden of Malaria in Northeastern Ethiopia from 2015 to 2020: Implications for Pandemic Preparedness

Abstract

Background Regardless of various prevention and control strategies, malaria continues to be a significant public health problem in Ethiopia. As there are few studies on malaria trend analysis in Northeastern Ethiopia, it hinders the evaluation of ongoing and prioritization of new malaria intervention strategies, particularly during the period of pandemics. Therefore, the present study investigated the trend of malaria prevalence in Northeastern Ethiopia from 2015 to 2020. Methods An institution-based retrospective study was employed to assess the trend of malaria prevalence over a 6-year period (2015–2020) in three districts (Jile tumuga, Aruma fursi, and Dawachefa) of Northeastern Ethiopia. Data were extracted from clinical records of malaria cases by trained medical laboratory technologists. The associations between the prevalence of malaria and independent variables (age group, malaria transmission season, and districts) were assessed using chi-square test. P -values with a cut-off point of 0.05 were used to determine statistically significant associations. Results In our study area, a total of 212,952 malaria suspected patients were diagnosed over the 6 years. Of these, 33,005 (15.5%) were confirmed malaria cases. The identified Plasmodium species were Plasmodium falciparum and P. vivax , accounting for 66.4% and 33.6%, respectively. These with the age of >15 years old were the most affected (41.9%). The highest numbers of malaria cases (34.6%) were recorded during spring season (September to November). The prevalence of Plasmodium species showed a significant association with age (X 2 =9.7; p =0.002), districts (X 2 =13.5; p <0.001), and malaria transmission season (X 2 =16.5; p <0.001). Conclusion In our study area, P. falciparum is the dominant species. We noted that malaria remains a public health concern and fluctuates throughout the years. Therefore, national, regional, zonal, and district health bureaus should strengthen the ongoing and devise appropriate prevention and control strategies even during the period of pandemics.

Willingness to accept Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS) for Malaria Prevention and associated factors in Southwest Ethiopia

“…This nding is consistent with a study conducted in the central part of Ethiopia [30]. This acceptance status was found to be unsatisfactory according to the WHO recommendation and Ethiopia's malaria elimination strategic plan 2021-2025, which targeted IRS coverage > 80% for effective malaria elimination [23,24]. In addition, this study showed considerably lower acceptance than did reports from previous studies conducted in Iran (98-100%) [17], Nigeria (82.6%) [39], Uganda (79.9%) [40], and Rwanda (73.9%) [41].…”

“…Ethiopia accounts for approximately 1.7% of malarial cases and 1.5% of deaths per year globally [22]. Three-fourths of the landmasses are favorable for malaria, and seventy percent of the population live at risk of acquiring malaria [23,24]. Subsequently, Ethiopia has been implementing integrated modes of preventing and controlling malaria for prolonged periods.…”

A Response to the Article “A Retrospective Study on the Burden of Malaria in Northeastern Ethiopia from 2015 to 2020: Implications for Pandemic Preparedness” [Letter]

“…Daba et al’s study was performed in order to investigate the trend of malaria prevalence in Northeastern Ethiopia from 2015 to 2020. 4 It is an important report to characterize Plasmodium in that area to support prevention activity against malaria infection which is a significant public health problem. Plasmodium was identified in this study based on microscopic technique.…”

Exploring coagulation parameters as predictive biomarkers of Plasmodium infection: A comprehensive analysis of coagulation parameters

“…The report also stated that there were 608,000 deaths reported globally in 2022, with around 580,000 of those occurring in Africa [7]. In Ethiopia, malaria is a significant public health problem, with nearly 70% of the population at risk of contracting the disease [8]. The predominant malaria-causing species are P. falciparum and P. vivax, accounting for 69% and 31%, respectively [9,10].…”