Worry over new malaria surge from blood stocks

Some areas of sub-Saharan Africa are reporting that nearly one in four blood bank supplies contain the parasites that cause malaria.

For a region that accounts for 90 per cent of all malaria cases in the world — according to the World Health Organisation — its blood banks, like all other sources of disease transmission, need to be addressed.

According to a study titled A systematic Review and Meta-analysis of the Risk of Transfusion-transmitted Malaria from Blood Donors in Sub-Saharan Africa conducted by WorldWide Antimalarial Resistance Network, since half of the children receiving blood transfusions to address malaria-induced anaemia, the failure to keep these banks safe puts children and their parents at risk.

The achievements

“Malaria is one of the primary infections that can be transmitted through a blood transfusion in sub-Saharan Africa,” said Dr Selali Fiamanya, the study leader.

“Our research is only the first line of inquiry to address this risk. Pregnant women and children receive the majority of transfusions. Now, the technical challenge of diagnosing and removing the malaria parasite from the blood banks requires further analysis,” she added.

The study gathered results from 24 studies to assess malaria prevalence among 22,508 blood donors. Prevalence of malaria parasites was 23.46 per cent ranging from 6.5 per cent to 74.1 per cent, including more than 10 studies from Nigeria.

Today, more than half the world’s countries have eliminated the plasmodium and at least 10 others are on track to eliminate malaria by 2020.

The WHO says Algeria, Botswana, Cape Verde, Comoros, South Africa, Swaziland have the potential to eliminate it by 2020.

Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia, and Zimbabwe have partnered as the Elimination 8, to wipe out the disease by 2030.