Global Journal of Medical Research, F: Diseases, Volume 22 Issue 4

A Brief Study on the Prevalence of Malaria in Kolkata, West Bengal, India Aditi Munmun Sengupta α , Diptendu Chatterjee σ & Rima Ghosh ρ 25 Year 2022 Global Journal of Medical Research Volume XXII Issue IV Version I ( D ) F © 2022 Global Journals Abstract- Objectives: Malaria has been a major public health problem in India, with cases therein contributing significantly to the overall malaria burden within South East Asia. Majority of malaria cases in India have occurred within the eastern and central regions of the country. Over 80% of the country’s total malaria cases have been reported from 10 states. Statistics for the state of West Bengal had reported approximately 26,000 and 25,000 malaria cases in 2014 and 2018, respectively, with Kolkata still being considered the most malaria-prone district of West Bengal. Methods: A cross-sectional study was designed based on data collected from the Kolkata Municipal Corporation documents on Taltala area residents during the winter. Collected data included age, sex, malaria category, medicine intake history, and others. Outcomes following medication, such as chloroquine tablets, artemisinin-based combination therapies, and primaquine, were also assessed. Results: A total of 120 patients were included, the vast majority of whom were male (88.3%). Vivax malaria (87.5%; mean age of cases, 37 years) predominated over falciparum malaria (12.5%; mean age of cases, 28 years). Fewer cases occurred in October (49.16%) compared to November (50.83%), suggesting the prevalence of malaria during the winter. Conclusions: The current study showed that uncomplicated malaria cases predominated. Moreover, severe malaria was infrequent, no fatalities occurred, and response to oral drug therapy was good. Keywords: control strategies, Malaria, India, Kolkata, Plasmodium vivax, Plasmodium falciparum, seasonal trend. Corresponding Author α : Research Scholar, Department of Physiology, University of Calcutta, Harvard Medical School, Department of Continuing Medical Education. e-mail: sengupta2aditi@gmail.com Author σ : Associate Professor, Department of Anthropology, University of Calcutta and Deputy Registrar (Acting), University of Calcutta. Author ρ : Research Scholar, Department of Physiology, University of Calcutta. I. I ntroduction alaria has remained a major public health problem in India, with cases therein contributing significantly to the overall malaria burden in Southeast Asia. Majority of malaria cases in India have occurred within the eastern and central regions of the country. Around 90 countries, accounting for approximately 36% of the total world population, continue to be exposed to the risk of malaria. The main causative agent for this infectious disease is a parasite called “ Plasmodium ” from the protozoan family, which is spread through Anopheles or Culex mosquitoes—the main vectors of this infectious disease. World Health Organization (WHO) estimates show that out of the 1.4 billion total population across 11 countries, approximately 1.2 billion are at risk of being exposed to the malaria epidemic. Among the aforementioned 11 countries, India has reported 2.5 million cases of malaria, which accounts for approximately 76% of the total reported cases, substantially contributing to the global burden nowadays,[1,2]. Three prospective research areas can be utilized to study malaria, that is, biological, ecological, and socio cultural. The biological area, in which most studies have focused, holds more significance compared to the rest of other areas [3]. Nonetheless, sociocultural factors are evidently critical in controlling malaria given that human behavior can control the etiology of this disease. The combined interdisciplinary approach has been considered the best possible method of dealing with malaria. Most of the studies in India have focused on prevalence data collected from epidemic investigations. Despite studies M . सार - उ�े� : मले�रया भारत म� एक प्रमुख साव�जिनक �ा� सम�ा रही है, इसके मामलों ने दि�ण पूव� एिशया के भीतर समग्र मले�रया बोझ म� मह�पूण� योगदान िदया है। भारत म� मले�रया के अिधकांश मामले देश के पूव� और म� �ेत्रों म� �ए ह�। देश के कुल मले�रया के 80% से अिधक मामले 10 रा�ों से सामने आए ह�। पि�म बंगाल रा� के आंकड़ों म� क्रमशः 2014 और 2018 म� लगभग 26,000 और 25,000 मले�रया के मामले दज� िकए गए थे, कोलकाता को अभी भी पि�म बंगाल का सबसे अिधक मले�रया- प्रवण िजला माना जाता है। तरीके : सिद�यों के दौरान तलतला �ेत्र के िनवािसयों पर कोलकाता नगर िनगम के द�ावेजों से एकत्र िकए गए आंकड़ों के आधार पर एक क्रॉस-से�नल अ�यन तैयार िकया गया था। एकित्रत डेटा म� आयु, िलंग, मले�रया श्रेणी, दवा सेवन इितहास और अ� शािमल थे। दवा के बाद के प�रणामों, जैसे �ोरो�ीन की गोिलयां, आट�िमिसिनन-आधा�रत संयोजन िचिक�ा और प्राइमा�ीन का भी िकया गया था। प�रणाम : कुल 120 रोिगयों को शािमल िकया गया, िजनम� से अिधकांश पु�ष (88.3%) थे। िववै� मले�रया (87.5%; मामलों की औसत आयु, 37 वष�) फा�ीपेरम मले�रया (12.5%; मामलों की औसत आयु, 28 वष�) पर हावी है। नवंबर (50.83%) की तुलना म� अ�ूबर (49.16%) म� कम मामले सामने आए, जो सिद�यों के दौरान मले�रया के प्रसार को दशा�ता है। िन�ष� : वत�मान अ�यन से पता चला है िक मले�रया के जिटल मामले प्रमुख ह�। इसके अलावा, गंभीर मले�रया दुल�भ था, कोई मौत नहीं �ई, और मौ�खक दवा िचिक�ा की प्रितिक्रया अ�ी थी। मु� श�: िनयंत्रण रणनीितयाँ, मले�रया, भारत, कोलकाता, �ा�ोिडयम िववै�, �ा�ोिडयम फा�ीपेरम, मौसमी प्रवृि�. मूल्ाोंकि