Malaria is caused by single-celled parasites of the Plasmodium genus. It is spread from human to human by infected female Anopheles mosquitoes.
The disease is widespread in the tropical and subtropical regions of the world and is most devastating in Sub-Saharan Africa. In 2017, an estimated 219 million cases of malaria occurred worldwide with 435,000 deaths. Children aged under 5 years are the most vulnerable group accounting for 61% of all malaria deaths.
Australia was declared ‘malaria free’ by the World Health Organization in 1981. However, mosquito species that can transmit the malaria parasite remain distributed throughout Australia and the number of imported cases has increased dramatically with the increase in global travel.
Since the 1980s there have been several outbreaks associated with the introduction of Plasmodium vivax or Plasmodium falciparum in an infected human or mosquito from overseas.
In 2002, 7 locally acquired cases of Plasmodium vivax were reported from a campsite in north Queensland. In 2011, 8 cases of locally-acquired Plasmodium falciparum malaria occurred on the Torres Strait islands of Saibai and Dauan.
For more information, please visit:
World Health Organisation- Malaria Fact Sheets
Centres for Disease Control and Prevention- Malaria information and prophylaxis by country
