Malaria is a serious tropical disease spread by mosquitoes.
A single mosquito bite is all it takes for someone to become infected but the disease can be prevented by taking antimalarial drugs before visiting countries where you could be at risk.
If prevention is not taken, malaria, if not diagnosed and treated promptly, can be fatal.
Malaria can be easily avoided by taking antimalarial drugs before your trip.
Bite prevention – avoid mosquito bites by using insect repellent, covering your arms and legs and using an insecticide-treated mosquito net.
Check whether you need to take malaria prevention tablets – Information on the correct dose and when you need to start the course of antimalarial tablets will be provided at your appointment.
Diagnosis – seek immediate medical advice if you develop malaria symptoms, including up to a year after you return from travelling.
The plasmodium parasite is mainly spread by female Anopheles mosquitoes, which mostly bite at night. When an infected mosquito bites a human, it passes the parasites into the bloodstream.
The World Malaria Report, published by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2013, states that in 2012 there were 207 million cases of malaria worldwide and 627,000 deaths.
Malaria is not found in the UK, although about 1,400 travellers were diagnosed with malaria after returning to the UK from the areas above in 2012.
It is important to be aware of the symptoms of malaria if you are travelling to areas where there is a high malaria risk.