The prevention of malaria.

Abstract

Long before the advent of modern chemoprophylaxis drugs, many practitioners successfully prevented the debilitating and fatal outcomes associated with infection by the Plasmodium parasites that cause malaria. Today, with effective insect repellents and several excellent medications available for chemoprophylaxis, there has never been a better array of quality products to prevent mosquito bites and infection and to suppress parasites once in the blood stream; however, there are thousands of imported cases into nonendemic countries and scores of deaths and near-fatal outcomes every year in returning travelers, soldiers, immigrants, and refugees. In this article, the author focuses on practical uses of currently available prevention tools.