Malaria case shocks Jamaicans

January 30th, 2013

Recently, a Jamaican was diagnosed with the very contagious disease, malaria. It was reported that he had visited a country on the African continent, and this is where he may have contracted the deadly disease.
What is Malaria?

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Malaria is caused by a parasite called Plasmodium, which is transmitted via the bites of infected mosquitoes. In the human body, the parasites multiply in the liver, and then infect red blood cells.

Symptoms of malaria include fever, headache, and vomiting, and usually appear between 10 and 15 days after the mosquito bite. If not treated, malaria can quickly become life-threatening by disrupting the blood supply to vital organs. In many parts of the world, the parasites have developed resistance to a number of malaria medicines.

Key interventions to control malaria include: prompt and effective treatment with artemisinin-based combination therapies; use of insecticidal nets by people at risk; and indoor residual spraying with insecticide to control the vector mosquitoes.

Although the Chairman of the North East Regional Health Authority, Leon Gordon, confirmed the case of malaria, he says Jamaicans should not panic. He emphasised that the health department was dealing with the problem, and taking the necessary precautionary methods to stop the disease from spreading.

“It is a concern and that is why we are taking the necessary precautionary measures, but to date we have had no other report of anybody else coming down with the illness,” said Gordon.
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4 Responses to “Malaria case shocks Jamaicans”

  1. Jo Bent says:
    January 31, 2013 at 10:52 am

    Jamaicans like to flit all over the place
    they ought to be responsible and get the
    required vaccines for some countries and dont bring back #$%& here, we have enough problems.

    Just dont know Y some want to promote flights
    from Accra to Jamaica…For what? we cannot endure more games if U know what I mean, there
    wont be no tourist trips out of there.

  2. cherry march says:
    February 1, 2013 at 8:45 am

    clean up the nasty places you live in and the smelly dirty water you have standing around you yard.

  3. hscamz says:
    February 1, 2013 at 9:42 am

    Really?! `Someone brought it back from Africa`; that´s the story the govt is going with again! Hmm.. let’s see if it all adds up , using only news reports dating back to 2006- 2007, when 13 cases were confirmed on the island ( majority in West Kinston)- the first cases of malaria in our country after THIRTY years. And why in West Kinsgton?
    Hmmmm… could it have to do with warnings from the MINISTRY OF HEALTH months prior to these cases that a malaria outbreak would take place if govt didnt stop with the sabbotage politics and allocate funds to the municipal for adequate drain cleaning and garbage collection, especially in the West kingston area, where there officials warned that the concentration of Anopheles larvea, the malaria vetor, was rising to levels compatible with an outbreak ?! Hmmm…
    And so, when the story broke(http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20061204/lead/lead2.html) at the start of the 2006/2007 winter tourist season in and the CDC issued an advisory for US traveles to the island (Dec4, 2006 http://gocaribbean.about.com/b/2006/12/21/malaria-outbreak-in-jamaica.htm ), threatening one of the last productive sectors , someone came up with the claimed that a visitor from `Africa` had brought it here; at the same noone was able to ID which of the 34 countries on the continent this vistor had come from!
    So, as speculations about jamaicans returing from exotic destinations and swarms of infected africans descending on the island continue to fly ; the question: `where and how did the malaria spreading Anophales vetor accumulate?´ begs an explaination.

  4. Hamdia says:
    February 1, 2013 at 11:26 am

    Malaria is not contagious. You only get malaria when you are bitten by mosquitoes that carry the parasites. No one can get malaria from another person who has it and that is a fact. We certainly do not need malaria in Jamaica so if there are any planes that comes to Jamaica directly from Africa our government have to make sure that they spray that plane before take off just like the French airlines do before leaving Africa.

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