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Malaria is listed as a "rare disease" by the Office of Rare Diseases (ORD) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This means that Malaria, or a subtype of Malaria, affects less than 200,000 people in the US population.
Ophanet, who are a consortium of European partners, currently defines a condition rare when if affects 1 person per 2,000. They list Malaria as a "rare disease". More information about Malaria is available from Orphanet
1,800 cases annually (1997); 1,666 annual cases notified in USA 1999 (MMWR 1999) ... see also overview of Malaria.
approx 1 in 151,111 or 0.00% or 1,800 people in USA [Source statistic for calcuation: "1,800 cases annually (1997); 1,666 annual cases notified in USA 1999 (MMWR 1999)" -- see also general information about data sources]
1,799 per year, 149 per month, 34 per week, 4 per day, 0 per hour, 0 per minute, 0 per second. [Source statistic for calculation: "1,800 cases annually (1997); 1,666 annual cases notified in USA 1999 (MMWR 1999)" -- see also general information about data sources]
In the United States, approximately 1,000 cases are reported annually, which researchers estimate represent only 25 to 50 percent of actual cases. (Source: excerpt from Microbes in Sickness and in Health - Publications, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases: NIAID)
Each year, 300 to 500 million people develop malaria and 1.5 to 3 million–mostly children–die, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). (Source: excerpt from Malaria, NIAID Fact Sheet: NIAID)
Although the disease was eradicated in the United States in the 1940s, about 1,000-1,400 cases of malaria are reported to CDC each year; almost all acquired during international travel. Over 75% of these cases are associated with failure to use recommended chemoprophylaxis. (Source: excerpt from Facts About Transfusion-Transmitted Malaria: CDC-OC)
Each year in the United States, several cases (< 10) of malaria are acquired stateside, by congenital transmission, local mosquito-borne transmission, or by blood transfusion or organ transplantation. On average, 2-3 cases of transmission occur by blood transfusion annually. (Source: excerpt from Facts About Transfusion-Transmitted Malaria: CDC-OC)
300 to 500 million people develop malaria
The following statistics relate to the incidence of Malaria:
The following statistics relate to deaths and Malaria:
16 MEDICAL BOOKS ONLINE! Review excerpts from medical books online, free, without registration, for more information about the prevalence and/or incidence of Malaria.
Malaria literally means “bad air” and for centuries was thought to result from the inhalation of swamp vapors. It's now known that malaria is transmitted by the bite of female Anopheles mosquitoes, which abound in humid, swampy areas. When an infected mosquito bites, it injects Plasmodium sporozoites into the wound. The infective sporozoites migrate by blood circulation to parenchymal cells of the liver; there they form cystlike structures containing thousands of merozoites.
Upon release, each merozoite invades an erythrocyte and feeds on hemoglobin. Eventually, the erythrocyte ruptures, releasing heme (malaria pigment), cell debris, and more merozoites, which, unless destroyed by phagocytes, enter other erythrocytes. (See What happens in malaria, page 262.) At this point, the infected person becomes a reservoir of malaria who infects any mosquito that feeds on him, thus beginning a new cycle of transmission.Hepatic parasites (P. vivax, P. ovale, and P. malariae) may persist for years in the liver. These parasites are responsible for the chronic carrier state. Because blood transfusions and street-drug paraphernalia can also spread malaria, drug addicts have a higher incidence of the disease. Malaria is a worldwide health problem that continues to impede the development of many countries.
Malaria is a tropical and subtropical disease. It's most prevalent in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates 300 to 500 million cases occur each year, with more than 1 million resulting in death. It's the greatest disease hazard for travelers in warm climates.
Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005
Colorado tick fever is transmitted to humans by a hard-shelled wood tick called Dermacentor andersoni. The adult tick acquires the virus when it bites infected rodents and remains permanently infective.
Incidence is high in Colorado, where up to 15% of people who regularly camp show past exposure. It's much less common in the rest of the United States.
Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005
A chronic infection in rodents, Lassa virus is transmitted to humans by contact with infected rodent urine, feces, and saliva. The virus enters the bloodstream, lymph vessels, and respiratory and digestive tracts. It then multiplies in the cells of the reticuloendothelial system. In the early stages of this illness, when the virus is in the throat, human transmission may occur through inhalation of infected droplets.
As many as 100 cases of Lassa fever occur annually in western Africa; the disease is rare in the United States.
Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005
The body louse (Pediculus humanus corporis) carries louse-borne relapsing fever (B. recurrentis), which typically occurs in epidemics during wars, famines, and mass migrations. Cold weather and crowded living conditions also favor the spread of body lice.
Inoculation takes place when the victim crushes the louse, causing its infected blood or body fluid to soak into the victim's bitten or abraded skin or mucous membranes.
Louse-borne relapsing fever is most common in North and Central Africa, Europe, Asia, and South America. No cases of louse-borne relapsing fever have been reported in the United States since 1900.
Tick-borne relapsing fever, however, is found in the United States and is caused by at least 15 Borrelia species; the three species most commonly identified with tick carriers are B. hermsii (associated with Ornithodoros hermsi), B. turicatae (associated with O. turicata), and B. parkeri (associated with O. parkeri). This form of the disease is most prevalent in Texas and other western states, usually during the summer when ticks and their hosts (chipmunks, goats, squirrels, rabbits, mice, rats, owls, lizards, and prairie dogs) are most active. In the colder weather, outbreaks sometimes afflict people such as campers who sleep in tick-infested cabins.
Because tick bites are virtually painless and most Ornithodoros ticks feed at night but don’t imbed themselves in the victim’s skin, many people are bitten unknowingly.
Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005
Rheumatic fever appears to be a hypersensitivity reaction to a group A beta-hemolytic streptococcal infection, in which antibodies manufactured to combat streptococci react and produce characteristic lesions at specific tissue sites, especially in the heart and joints. Because very few persons (3%) with streptococcal infections ever contract rheumatic fever, altered host resistance must be involved in its development or recurrence. Although rheumatic fever tends to be familial, this may merely reflect contributing environmental factors. For example, in lower socioeconomic groups, incidence is highest in children between ages 5 and 15, probably as a result of malnutrition and crowded living conditions. This disease strikes generally during cool, damp weather in the winter and early spring. In the United States, it’s most common in the northern states.
Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005
R. rickettsii is transmitted to a human or small animal by the prolonged bite (4 to 6 hours) of an adult tick — the wood tick (Dermacentor andersoni) in the west and by the dog tick (Dermacentor variabilis) in the east. Occasionally, it's acquired through inhalation (it can occur in laboratory settings where aerosolization of blood and specimens may occur) or through the contact of abraded skin with tick excreta or tissue juices. (This explains why people should'nt crush ticks between their fingers when removing them from other people and animals.) In most tick-infested areas, 1% to 5% of the ticks harbor R. rickettsii.
Endemic throughout the continental United States, RMSF is particularly prevalent in the southeast and southwest. Because RMSF is associated with outdoor activities, such as camping and backpacking, the incidence of this illness is usually higher in the spring and summer. Epidemiologic surveillance reports for RMSF indicate that the incidence is also higher in children ages 5 to 9, men and boys, and whites.
Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005
Source: The 5-Minute Pediatric Consult, 2008
The term 'prevalence' of Malaria usually refers to the estimated population
of people who are managing Malaria at any given time.
The term 'incidence' of Malaria refers to the annual diagnosis rate,
or the number of new cases of Malaria diagnosed each year.
Hence, these two statistics types can differ:
a short-lived disease like flu can have high annual incidence but low prevalence,
but a life-long disease like diabetes has a low annual incidence but high prevalence.
For more information see about prevalence and incidence statistics.
Footnotes:
1. Notifiable Diseases Online, PPHB, Canada, 2000
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