[Current information on treatment and prophylaxis of malaria (author's transl)]

Abstract

Malaria is not a disease of the past. As long as worldwide eradication has not been achieved there is a close connection between countries which export it and those which import it. If the European doctor is presently confronted with a feverish disease which may have been brought in from a tropical area, he should immediately think of malaria and take the necessary measures for treatment. If patients or travelers come into the office and enquire about drugs and preventive measures against malaria, the doctor must choose the correct methods. This is best done by two questions: Where have you come from? and Where are you going? In this way the doctor can obtain ideas on the possibility of resistant strains of parasite in the region in question. Tourists should not forget that a rational and regular chemoprophylaxis is the best protection against serious attacks of malaria.