Malaria Still No. 1 Killer

...872,224 cases recorded June - May, 2002

Statistics from the National Surveillance Unit of the Ministry of Health indicates that malaria is the number one killer disease in this climatic season as about 872,224 cases have been reported from January to May this year, with the death toll increasing from 248 last year to 264 as at the end of May, this year.

Mr. James Addo, the Data Manager of the unit, intimated to the Chronicle in an exclusive interview that the situation is alarming with the Brong Ahafo Region leading the other regions with the greatest number of about 132,082 people having been infected with the disease.

He stressed that in Africa the disease kills about 9,000 children under five years as well as pregnant women.

When asked about the causes of the disease in the country, he told Chronicle that the disease is normally acquired through the bite of female anopheles mosquito when one leaves one's surroundings dirty.

According to him, people are not conscientious to keep their environment clean and thus prevent an outbreak of the disease.

This, he said, has contributed to the increasing rate of the disease.

He added that Accra, the capital city of Ghana, which is supposed to have abetter sanitary picture, is no better than other areas of the country: the gutters are choked, in many places water is stagnant and people are doing relatively little about it, thus conditions conducive to the breeding of malria-causing mosquitoes abound.

Elaborating, he said the disease causes severe anaemia in children and pregnant women which some of whom deliver prematurely or even experience stillbirth.

He also disclosed to the Chronicle that the ministry is embarking on an educational programme to sensitise the public on the need to keep one's surroundings clean and also organise clean-up campaigns to tidy up the environment.

Among other things, he said the ministry together with its donor agencies has taken drugs worth about ?1.5 billion to the regions as part of its efforts to curb the pandemic.

He also advised that people buy insecticide-treated materials (ITM), a net treated with chemical to kill mosquitoes.

Addo cited cholera as a disease which is also claiming a lot of lives in the country, and noted that cholera, which used to be a seasonal disease, now prevails throughout the year.

He disclosed that if one gets the disease and nothing is done about it it will cause the death of the person and spread quickly to other people in close proximity the same surrounding.

Chronicle also gathered that the outfit sends personnel out whenever there is an outbreak of cholera in any part of the country to help save the situation.