Malaria epidemic in Lamta PHC of Balaghat district--a rice cultivating ecosystem
Chand, G.; Roy, S.K.; Tiwary, R.S.
Journal of Communicable Diseases 29(2): 179-181
1997
ISSN/ISBN: 0019-5138 PMID: 9282521 Document Number: 472237
Following unusual deaths, suspected to be caused by malaria, in the villages of the Lamta primary health centre area (PHC) in Balaghat, Madhya Pradesh, India, a fever survey was carried out in the first week of December 1995. Most villages in the area are surrounded by rice fields and forests. There was no insecticide spraying in 1994; in 1995, spraying was restricted to villages with a high incidence of malaria. The survey covered 9 villages with a total population of 4558; 5 had been sprayed with DDT in November 1995 after unusual deaths; the other 4 had had no unusual deaths or spraying. 846 blood smears (342 from sprayed and 504 from unsprayed villages) were collected from patients with fever or a recent history of it. 582 (68.3%) were positive for malaria; this rate varied between 40 and 88.4% in the different villages. Plasmodium falciparum was the commonest species, being found in 89.3% of positive cases. There was no significant difference in prevalence between the sprayed and unsprayed villages. There were, however, fewer febrile cases (P<0.05) in the sprayed villages, possibly because of the control measures taken. There was a high prevalence of parasitaemia among afebrile people. The figures collected by the PHC appeared to be an underestimate of malaria and P. falciparum prevalence. Ten Anopheles species were found in the area; A. culicifacies and A. annularis made up most of the population, but A. fluviatilis, which was not common, is considered to be important because of its high anthropophily. It is concluded that the high morbidity and mortality were due to the very high incidence of P. falciparum malaria, caused by the lack of spraying, possible faulty slide examination, and delayed treatment.