Assessing the burden of pregnancy-associated malaria under changing transmission settings.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The clinical presentation of pregnancy-associated malaria, or PAM, depends crucially on the particular epidemiological settings. This can potentially lead to an underestimation of its overall burden on the female population, especially in regions prone to epidemic outbreaks and where malaria transmission is generally low.

Methods

Here, by re-examining historical data, it is demonstrated how excess female mortality can be used to evaluate the burden of PAM. A simple mathematical model is then developed to highlight the contrasting signatures of PAM within the endemicity spectrum and to show how PAM is influenced by the intensity and stability of transmission.

Results

Both the data and the model show that maternal malaria has a huge impact on the female popul

SUBMITTER: Recker M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2774336 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature