World in danger of losing war against malaria, says health experts

Sep 23, 2009, 13:10 GMT

   Hong Kong - The world is in danger of losing its war against malaria unless urgent action is taken to stop the spread of the latest drug resistant strain of the killer disease, experts meeting in Hong Kong heard Wednesday.

   Dr Shin Young-soo, WHO regional director for the Western Pacific, warned that a drug-resistant strain of malaria now present on the Cambodian-Thai border would pose a serious threat to world health if it is allowed to spread to other regions, including Africa.

   At present, the most effective anti-malaria treatment is a combination of drugs containing artemisinin, a drug derived from a plant used in Chinese herbal medicine, that has been found to be most effective in treating drug resistant strains.

   However, evidence now suggests that strains of the mosquito- carried disease on the Cambodian-Thai border are developing a resistance to artemisinin.

   'Artemisinin-based combination therapy, the most effective anti-malaria treatment to date and among the last resources in our arsenal of drugs against the disease, is seriously threatened by evidence of resistance to the treatment in the Cambodian-Thai border,' Dr Shin said.    

   Dr Shin issued the warning in a report to the annual general meeting of the Regional Committee for the Western Pacific, WHO's governing body in the region.

   'Artemisinin-resistance needs urgent containment to prevent further spread of drug resistance,' he said.

   Dr Shin said the problem was being further exacerbated by the proliferation of counterfeit anti-malarial drugs, which was a significant problem in the region.

   Half of the world's population is at risk of malaria, with Africa reporting up to 86 per cent of all cases and more than 91 per cent of all deaths.

   Although the mortality rate from malaria has been significantly reduced in the Western Pacific Region, the disease remains a problem in 10 countries including Cambodia, China, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam.

   In 2008, there were 248,141 confirmed malaria cases and 1,005 malaria deaths reported in the region, although the true number is believed to be much higher.

   WHO is coordinating efforts to beat drug-resistant malaria through strategies such as promoting the use of insecticide-treated mosquito nets and the use of appropriate drug combinations.

   Dr Shin said the successful elimination of malaria would rely on increasing malaria-control activities which would require more funding.

   'Member States will also need to incorporate malaria elimination efforts into their respective health systems and commit significant funding and human resources to achieve this target,' Dr Shin said.

   To meet these challenges, WHO is asking the regional committee to endorse an action plan developed in conjunction with its member countries in the region.

   The issue is one of many on the agenda during the five-day meeting in Hong Kong which runs until Friday. Others include the H1N1 pandemic and poverty.