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In 2022, the World Health Organization extended their guidelines for perennial malaria chemoprevention (PMC) from infants to children up to 24 months old. However, evidence for PMC's public health impact is primarily limited to children under 15 months. Further research is needed to assess the public health impact and cost-effectiveness of PMC, and the added benefit of further age-expansion. We integrated an individual-based model of malaria with pharmacological models of drug action to address these questions for PMC and a proposed age-expanded schedule (referred as PMC+, for children 03-36 months).
In the context of high malaria burden yet limited resources, Guinea's national malaria programme adopted an innovative subnational tailoring approach, including engagement of stakeholders, data review, and data analytics, to update their malaria operational plan for 2024-2026 and identify the most appropriate interventions for each district considering the resources available.
Bhutan has achieved a substantial reduction in both malaria morbidity and mortality over the last two decades and is aiming for malaria elimination certification in 2025. However, a significant percentage of malaria cases in Bhutan are imported (acquired in another country). The aim of the study was to understand how importation drives local malaria transmission in Bhutan.
The World Health Organization identifies a strong surveillance system for malaria and its mosquito vector as an essential pillar of the malaria elimination agenda. Anopheles salivary antibodies are emerging biomarkers of exposure to mosquito bites that potentially overcome sensitivity and logistical constraints of traditional entomological surveys.
Human mobility is a driver for the reemergence or resurgence of malaria and has been identified as a source of cross-border transmission. However, movement patterns are difficult to measure in rural areas where malaria risk is high. In countries with malaria elimination goals, it is essential to determine the role of mobility on malaria transmission to implement appropriate interventions.
Since 2004, malaria transmission on Bioko Island has declined significantly as a result of the scaling-up of control interventions. The aim of eliminating malaria from the Island remains elusive, however, underscoring the need to adapt control to the local context. Understanding the factors driving the risk of malaria infection is critical to inform optimal suits of interventions in this adaptive approach.
Mass drug administration (MDA) with monthly dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine (DHA-PQP) appears useful in malaria control and elimination strategies. Determining the relationship between consecutive piperaquine phosphate (PQP) exposure and its impact on QT interval prolongation is a key safety consideration for MDA campaigns.
Providing protection from malaria vector bites, both indoors and outdoors, is crucial to curbing malaria parasite transmission. Screening of house entry points, especially with incorporated insecticides, confers significant protection but remains a costly and labour-intensive application. Use of spatial repellents has shown promise in creating areas of protection in peri-domestic areas.
Vector mosquito biting intensity is an important measure to understand malaria transmission. Human landing catch (HLC) is an effective but labour-intensive, expensive, and potentially hazardous entomological surveillance tool. The Centres for Disease Control light trap (CDC-LT) and the human decoy trap (HDT) are exposure-free alternatives.
Understanding the temporal dynamics of mosquito populations underlying vector-borne disease transmission is key to optimizing control strategies. Many questions remain surrounding the drivers of these dynamics and how they vary between species-questions rarely answerable from individual entomological studies (that typically focus on a single location or species).