Children: War against malaria

TUNMINI’S body temperature increased at a geometric rate, as she shivered throughout the night, despite the hotness of the weather.

As the cold heightened, Sandra, Tunmini’s mother rushed to her cabinet to get balm and applied to her palms and feet.

Tunmini’s condition of health defied all of the home care her mother knew of, as moments after the application of the balm, the young girl of 5 years started convulsing.

A caring mother Sandra was. She shouted her husband out of a sound sleep, asked him to get her some salt and a spoon. But some men, for who they are, amongst who was Daniel, Sandra’s husband, rose up reluctantly, as he dragged his feet, better still, himself through the sitting room into the kitchen.

There was no time to waste, as far as Sandra was concerned, but Daniel was not forthcoming. So, out of eagerness and anxiety of not wanting to lose her child, Sandra dipped her forefinger into the poor child’s mouth pending her husband’s return from the kitchen.

It was the scream that came from Sandra, as a result of the hard bite her convulsing child gave to her, that alarmed her husband as he rushed to the room with the spoon.

It was around 4 a.m in the early hours of the day, that Daniel drove his wife and daughter to the hospital, where Tunmini was admitted, after being diagnosed to have malaria.
Tunmini got discharged on the second day after a very good treatment. Malaria is one of the common diseases we have around us which, of course, is very deadly, as against many people’s belief.

Maternal and Child Health was opportune to speak with Dr. Adebola Orimadegun, a Consultant Paediatrician and Researcher, College of Medicine, University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, who said there are four main types of parasites that cause diseases in human beings, of which plasmodium , a parasite that cause malaria is one.

The researcher said, malaria is a problem in one hundred and five countries (105), mostly in Africa, Asia and Latin America. And this, according to him, accounts for 40 per cent of the world’s population.

The expert also disclosed that 90 per cent of malaria cases and deaths resulting from malaria occur in the Sub-Sahara Africa where Nigeria is located and this is buttressed by the estimate given by the WHO, that malaria kills a child somewhere in Africa, every 20 seconds. Isn’t this alarming?

In economic terms too, the world loses $12 billion and Nigeria, $32 million to malaria yearly. These are estimates of amount lost to prevention, treatment and lack of productivity in people suffering from malaria.

Coming to Nigeria, according to the Paediatrician, 40 per cent of patients seen in the hospital suffer from malaria, with children and even the unborn child at risk. Have you at any point in time noticed that your child whose blood genotype is AA have malaria too often, compared to the one with AS?

Yes, it will be, because according to Dr. Orimadegun, the risk of having malaria is higher in persons with AA genotype than in AS, but that rate of malaria complications is even higher in persons with SS/SC genotypes.

This communicable disease, which is transmitted from man to man by Anopheles mosquito can present in three (3) major forms.

The first form in which malaria can present itself, according to the doctor, is known as asymptomatic, that is, the person harbours the parasite without any symptom to the effect. The evil in this is that, this person can be a reservoir for the parasite and medium of transfer to others, that is, when Anopheles mosquito bites such a person, it takes in the parasite and trasmits it to people.

Aside this, malaria can present in an uncomplicated form, that is, simple malaria, in which the patient will just receive treatment as an outpatient.

And the last form given by Dr. Orimadegun is the severe or complicated malaria which can result to cerebral malaria affecting the brain, leaving the affected unconscious and anaemic. The individual under this condition must be admitted.

Warning signals for raising of an alarm by parents to their doctors include, fever i.e rise in body temperature, headache, chills, pallor i.e blood shortage, evident in the palms and feet of the child, passage of dark urine, yellowness of the eyes and convulsion. When any of the above symptoms is noticed in your child, your consultant should be consulted.

But as is being said, prevention is better and cheaper than cure, Orimadegun said people can be prevented from mosquito contact by directly killing the mosquito, using protective net i.e insecticide treated net or window net. You can also use insecticide sprays and DDT chemicals, while making and keeping your drainages clean and devoid of stagnant water where mosquitoes can breed is also important. Bushes around the environment should be cleared while healthy laws should be kept, among others.

However, Dr. Orimadegun said malaria vaccine is still being researched and not yet available.

On the home self care, the medical practitioner advised mothers to know malaria drugs which are now colour coded, with administration per age of the child on it. You are to check this with your doctor.

And on a final note, Orimadegun said the Sunday-Sunday syrup or tablets some mothers are in the habit of giving to their children is now being de-emphasised, except for children that are anaemic. Therefore, dwelling on all the above preventive measures as well as eating of balanced diet by the whole family, the war against malaria can be won.