Abstract

PIP: Malaria is the most common reason that people seek medical care in Ghana. This situation is taken for granted by the people, and there is no organized prevention effort. A World Health Organization-sponsored pilot malaria eradication program (1958-64) was abandoned after a peak period of activity in 1963 when vector control included indoor spraying with DDT. Recently there has been an upward trend in the incidence of malaria, with 15% of all cases becoming complicated. The main vector species are A. gambiae, A. melas, and A. funestus, and the predominant parasite species is Plasmodium falciparum. Treatment of choice is chloroquine phosphate, and although drug resistance has been suspected, it has not been documented. All health facilities are stretched to the limit with regard to the diagnosis and treatment of malaria. Field research is needed to provide a more accurate picture of the current situation. The clinical ability to deliver prompt diagnoses and treatment must be strengthened, and public health education must be instituted. The regional health management system must be improved, and personnel must be taught to use collected data. The use of bed nets, which is common in the south, should be encouraged, and impregnated nets should be introduced.