The Jamaica Ministry of Health has reported that three Jamaican men were diagnosed with Malaria in the past week. This is in addition to two other cases that were recorded in the first two months of this year. Director of Health Promotion and Protection Dr. Eva Lewis-Fuller has assured that Vector Control programmes are ongoing to search for and destroy anopheles breeding sites in the affected community of Christian Pen, St. Catherine. “At this point we are continuing the vector control programmes, that is finding breeding sites for the anopheles mosquito and also…spraying to kill the adult mosquitoes. We are taking the precautionary measures to prevent any spread from this small cluster…,” she said.
Malaria reared up in December 2006 after an absence of 40 years. Around 400 persons, mainly from Kingston and St. Catherine, were victim to the disease through 2007.
The resurgence of Malaria in Jamaica is not considered too alarming at this stage since sporadic cases are to be expected given that the disease has not yet been eradicated from the country. Nevertheless, the situation is not being taken lightly. Vector Control activities have been stepped up and health personnel are proactively going into Christian Pen homes to interview residents in order to find anyone who may have come down with a fever in the past few months and to test them for the malaria parasite. “We have initiated intense vector control…and fever surveillance activities. Meaning we’re going from house to house asking…about persons who had a fever in the past few months and testing them to see if any have been carrying the malaria parasite. We also carry out treatment as found necessary,” she said.
Plasmodium falciparum has been the prevalent strain in the Jamaica outbreak.
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Additional Resources: Malaria according to Adventure Doc
