Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2017 Jul 20;16(1):293.
doi: 10.1186/s12936-017-1936-3.

Malaria after international travel: a GeoSentinel analysis, 2003-2016

Kristina M Angelo  1 , Michael Libman  2 , Eric Caumes  3 , Davidson H Hamer  4 , Kevin C Kain  5 , Karin Leder  6   7 , Martin P Grobusch  8 , Stefan H Hagmann  9 , Phyllis Kozarsky  10   11 , David G Lalloo  12 , Poh-Lian Lim  13   14 , Calvin Patimeteeporn  10 , Philippe Gautret  15 , Silvia Odolini  16 , François Chappuis  17 , Douglas H Esposito  10 ; GeoSentinel Network
Collaborators, Affiliations

Malaria after international travel: a GeoSentinel analysis, 2003-2016

Kristina M Angelo et al. Malar J. .

Abstract

Background: More than 30,000 malaria cases are reported annually among international travellers. Despite improvements in malaria control, malaria continues to threaten travellers due to inaccurate perception of risk and sub-optimal pre-travel preparation.

Methods: Records with a confirmed malaria diagnosis after travel from January 2003 to July 2016 were obtained from GeoSentinel, a global surveillance network of travel and tropical medicine providers that monitors travel-related morbidity. Records were excluded if exposure country was missing or unascertainable or if there was a concomitant acute diagnosis unrelated to malaria. Records were analyzed to describe the demographic and clinical characteristics of international travellers with malaria.

Results: There were 5689 travellers included; 325 were children <18 years. More than half (53%) were visiting friends and relatives (VFRs). Most (83%) were exposed in sub-Saharan Africa. The median trip duration was 32 days (interquartile range 20-75); 53% did not have a pre-travel visit. More than half (62%) were hospitalized; children were hospitalized more frequently than adults (73 and 62%, respectively). Ninety-two per cent had a single Plasmodium species diagnosis, most frequently Plasmodium falciparum (4011; 76%). Travellers with P. falciparum were most frequently VFRs (60%). More than 40% of travellers with a trip duration ≤7 days had Plasmodium vivax. There were 444 (8%) travellers with severe malaria; 31 children had severe malaria. Twelve travellers died.

Conclusion: Malaria remains a serious threat to international travellers. Efforts must focus on preventive strategies aimed on children and VFRs, and chemoprophylaxis access and preventive measure adherence should be emphasized.

Keywords: GeoSentinel; International travel; Malaria; Plasmodium spp.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Number of malaria records from GeoSentinel meeting the exclusion and inclusion criteria, and species diagnoses for included cases, January 2003–June 2016
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. WHO. World malaria report 2015. Geneva, World Health Organization. http://www.who.int/malaria/publications/world-malaria-report-2015/report.... Accessed 1 Dec 2016.
    1. Loutan L. Malaria: still a threat to travellers. Int J Antimicrob Agents. 2003;21:158–163. doi: 10.1016/S0924-8579(02)00367-9. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Kain KC, Keystone JS. Malaria in travelers. Epidemiology, disease, and prevention. Infect Dis Clin North Am. 1998;12:267–284. doi: 10.1016/S0891-5520(05)70005-2. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Tatem AJ, Jia P, Ordanovich D, Falkner M, Huang Z, Howes R, et al. The geography of imported malaria to non-endemic countries: a meta-analysis of nationally reported statistics. Lancet Infect Dis. 2017;17:98–107. doi: 10.1016/S1473-3099(16)30326-7. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Mace KE, Arguin PM. Malaria surveillance—United States, 2014. MMWR Surveill Summ. 2017;66(12):1–24. doi: 10.15585/mmwr.ss6612a1. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

Publication types