Abstract
Aim
Malaria is one of the most serious public health issues worldwide and is still responsible for the deaths of nearly half a million individuals every year worldwide. The aim of this study is to investigate the epidemiology of the incidence of and mortality from malaria and its association with the human development index (HDI).
Subjects and methods
The present research is an ecological study conducted in 2017 that explored the association between the HDI and incidence of and mortality from malaria in WHO regions based on data extracted from the World Bank. In this study, the two-variable correlation method was adopted to analyze the data extracted to investigate the correlation between malaria incidence and HDI. A significance level of P < 0.05 was considered. The analyses were performed using Stata14 software.
Results
The highest incidence of malaria in the world was reported in 2001 (80.73 per 1000 people) and the lowest in 2017 (59.12 per 1000). The results revealed a significant reverse correlation between malaria incidence (r = −0.640, P < 0.0001) and the HDI index in 2017. The analysis of HDI decomposites with malaria incidence in 2017 demonstrated a reverse and significant correlation between malaria incidence and gross national income per 1000 capita (r = −0.365, P < 0.0001), mean years of schooling (r = −0.477, P < 0.0001), life expectancy at birth (r = −0.694, P < 0.0001) and expected years of schooling (r = −0.458, P < 0.0001).
Conclusion
Given the reverse correlation between malaria incidence and HDI, a greater emphasis on factors associated with the disease in these countries, effective prevention and awareness raising about the means of transmission can be effective in curbing the incidence of this disease.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Ahmad R, Ali WN, Nor ZM, Ismail Z, Hadi AA, Ibrahim MN, Lim LH (2011) Mapping of mosquito breeding sites in malaria endemic areas in Pos Lenjang, Kuala Lipis, Pahang, Malaysia. Malar J 10(1):361. https://doi.org/10.1186/1475-2875-10-361
Ayele DG, Zewotir TT, Mwambi HG (2012) Prevalence and risk factors of malaria in Ethiopia. Malar J 11(1):195. https://doi.org/10.1186/1475-2875-11-195
Ayele DG, Zewotir TT, Mwambi HG (2014) Semiparametric models for malaria rapid diagnosis test result. BMC Public Health 14(1):31. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-14-31
Basu AM, Stephenson R (2005) Low levels of maternal education and the proximate determinants of childhood mortality: a little learning is not a dangerous thing. Soc Sci Med 60(9):20. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2004.08.057
Beaudrap D, Pierre CN, Grandesso F, Turyakira E, Schramm B, Boum Y, Etard J-F (2011) Heterogeneous decrease in malaria prevalence in children over a six-year period in South-Western Uganda. Malar J 10(1):132. https://doi.org/10.1186/1475-2875-10-132
Bhatt S, Weiss D, Cameron E, Bisanzio D, Mappin B, Dalrymple U, Eckhoff P (2015) The effect of malaria control on Plasmodium falciparum in Africa between 2000 and 2015. Nature 526(7572):207–211. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature15535
Bhutta ZA, Sommerfeld J, Lassi ZS, Salam RA, Das JK (2014) Global burden, distribution, and interventions for infectious diseases of poverty. Infectious diseases of poverty 3(1):21. https://doi.org/10.1186/2049-9957-3-21
Bousema T, Drakeley C, Gesase S, Hashim R, Magesa S, Mosha F, Otieno S, Carneiro I, Cox J, Msuya E (2010) Identification of hot spots of malaria transmission for targeted malaria control. J Infect Dis 201(11):1764–1774. https://doi.org/10.1086/652456
Brachman PS (1998) Reemergence of Plasmodium vivax malaria in the Republic of Korea. Emerg Infect Dis 4(4):707. https://doi.org/10.3201/eid0404.980432
Bray F, Jemal A, Grey N, Ferlay J, Forman D (2012) Global cancer transitions according to the human development index (2008–2030): a population-based study. Lancet Oncol 13(8):790–801. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1470-2045(12)70211-5
Clarke SE, Bøgh C, Brown RC, Pinder M, Walraven GEL, Lindsay SW (2001) Do untreated Bednets protect against malaria? Trans R Soc Trop Med Hyg 95(5):457–462. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0035-9203(01)90001-X
Danis K, Baka A, Lenglet A, Van Bortel W, Terzaki I, Tseroni M, Gewehr S (2011) Autochthonous Plasmodium vivax malaria in Greece, 2011. Eurosurveillance 16(42):19993
de Deus Vieira G, Gim KNM, Zaqueo GM, da Cunha AT, Katsuragawa TH, de Almeida BS, de Sousa CM (2014) Reduction of incidence and relapse or recrudescence cases of malaria in the western region of the Brazilian Amazon. The Journal of Infection in Developing Countries 8(09):1181–1187. https://doi.org/10.3855/jidc.4422
Eperon G, Durieux-Paillard S, Mauris A, Chappuis F, Gysin N (2017) Malaria cases in Switzerland from 2005 to 2015 and recent rise of imported Plasmodium vivax malaria. Swiss Med Wkly 147(41):142. https://doi.org/10.4414/smw.2017.14510
Fairlie RW (2005) An extension of the blinder-Oaxaca decomposition technique to logit and Probit models. J Econ Soc Meas 30(4):305–316. https://doi.org/10.3233/JEM-2005-0259
Franco-Herrera D, González-Ocampo D, Restrepo-Montoya V, Gómez-Guevara JE, Alvear-Villacorte N, Rodíguez-Morales AJ (2018) Relationship between malaria epidemiology and the human development index in Colombia and Latin America. Le infezioni in medicina 26(3):255–262
Gahutu J-B, Steininger C, Shyirambere C, Zeile I, Cwinya-Ay N, Danquah I, Larsen CH, Eggelte TA, Aline Uwimana and Corine Karema (2011) Prevalence and risk factors of malaria among children in southern Highland Rwanda. Malar J 10(1):134. https://doi.org/10.1186/1475-2875-10-134
Gallup JL, Sachs JD (2001) The economic burden of malaria. Am J Trop Med Hyg 64(1_suppl):85–96. https://doi.org/10.4269/ajtmh.2001.64.85
Ghebreyesus TA, Haile M, Witten KH, Getachew A, Yohannes M, Lindsay SW, Byass P (2000) Household risk factors for malaria among children in the Ethiopian highlands. Trans R Soc Trop Med Hyg 94(1):17–21. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0035-9203(00)90424-3
Hanna JN, Ritchie SA, Brookes DL, Montgomery BL, Eisen DP, Cooper RD (2004) An outbreak of Plasmodium vivax malaria in far North Queensland, 2002. Med J Aust 180(1):24–28. https://doi.org/10.5694/j.1326-5377.2004.tb05769.x
Hiscox A, Khammanithong P, Kaul S, Sananikhom P, Luthi R, Hill N, Brey PT, Lindsay SW (2013) Risk factors for mosquito house entry in the Lao Pdr. PLoS One 8(5):132. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0062769
Kasetsirikul S, Buranapong J, Srituravanich W, Kaewthamasorn M, Pimpin A (2016) The development of malaria diagnostic techniques: a review of the approaches with focus on dielectrophoretic and magnetophoretic methods. Malar J 15(1):358. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12936-016-1400-9
Khazaei Z, Sohrabivafa M, Mansori K, Naemi H, Goodarzi E (2019a) Incidence and mortality of cervix cancer and their relationship with the human development index in 185 countries in the world: an ecology study in 2018. Advances in Human Biology 9(3):222. https://doi.org/10.4103/AIHB.AIHB_15_19
Khazaei Z, Jarrahi AM, Momenabadi V, Ghorat F, Adineh H, Sohrabivafa M, Goodarzi E (2019b) Global cancer statistics 2018: GLOBOCAN estimates of incidence and mortality worldwide stomach cancers and their relationship with the human development index (HDI). World Cancer Research Journal 6:9
Kirby MJ, Ameh D, Bottomley C, Green C, Jawara M, Milligan PJ, Snell PC, Conway DJ, Lindsay SW (2009) Effect of two different house screening interventions on exposure to malaria vectors and on Anaemia in children in the Gambia: a randomised controlled trial. Lancet 374(9694):998–1009. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(09)60871-0
Medina-Morales DA, Montoya-Franco E, Sanchez-Aristizabal V, Machado-Alba JE, Rodríguez-Morales AJ (2016) Severe and benign Plasmodium vivax malaria in Embera (Amerindian) children and adolescents from an endemic municipality in Western Colombia. Journal of infection and public health 9(2):172–180. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jiph.2015.09.001
Murray CJ, Rosenfeld LC, Lim SS, Andrews KG, Foreman KJ, Haring D, Lopez AD (2012) Global malaria mortality between 1980 and 2010: a systematic analysis. Lancet 379(9814):413–431. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(12)60034-8
Njau JD, Stephenson R, Menon MP, Kachur SP, McFarland DA (2014) Investigating the important correlates of maternal education and childhood malaria infections. Am J Trop Med Hyg 91(3):509–519. https://doi.org/10.4269/ajtmh.13-0713
Qin L, Chen C, Chen L, Xue R, Ou-Yang M, Zhou C, He J (2017) Worldwide malaria incidence and cancer mortality are inversely associated. Infectious agents and cancer 12(1):14. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13027-017-0117-x
Renault CS, Bastos FA, Filgueira JPPS, Homma TK (2007) Epidemiologia da malária no município de Belém-Pará. Revista Paraense de Medicina 21(3):19–24
Sachs J, Malaney P (2002) The economic and social burden of malaria. Nature 415(6872):680–685. https://doi.org/10.1038/415680a
Sintasath DM, Ghebremeskel T, Lynch M, Kleinau E, Bretas G, Shililu J, Brantly E, Graves PM, Beier JC (2005) Malaria prevalence and associated risk factors in Eritrea. Am J Trop Med Hyg 72(6):682–687. https://doi.org/10.4269/ajtmh.2005.72.682
Somi MF, Butler JR, Vahid F, Njau JD, Kachur SP, Abdulla S (2008) Use of proxy measures in estimating socioeconomic inequalities in malaria prevalence. Tropical Med Int Health 13(3):354–364. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-3156.2008.02009.x
Sonko ST, Jaiteh M, Jafali J, Jarju LBS, D’Alessandro U, Camara A, Komma-Bah M, Saho A (2014) Does socio-economic status explain the differentials in malaria parasite prevalence? Evidence from the Gambia. Malar J 13(1):449. https://doi.org/10.1186/1475-2875-13-449
Teklehaimanot A, Mejia P (2008) Malaria and poverty. Ann N Y Acad Sci 1136(1):32–37
Temu EA, Coleman M, Abilio AP, Kleinschmidt I (2012) High prevalence of malaria in Zambezia, Mozambique: the protective effect of Irs versus increased risks due to pig-keeping and house construction. PLoS One 7(2):238. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0031409
Thellier M, Simard F, Musset L, Cot M, Velut G, Kendjo E, Pradines B (2019) Changes in malaria epidemiology in France and worldwide, 2000–2015. Medecine et maladies infectieuses 50(2):99–112. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.medmal.2019.06.002
Van Geertruyden JP, Thomas F, Erhart A, D’Alessandro U (2004) The contribution of malaria in pregnancy to perinatal mortality. Am J Trop Med Hyg 71(2_suppl):35–40. https://doi.org/10.4269/ajtmh.2004.71.35
Vikram K, Vanneman R, Desai S (2012) Linkages between maternal education and childhood immunization in India. Soc Sci Med 75(2):331–339. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2012.02.043
Were V, Buff AM, Desai M, Kariuki S, Samuels A, Ter Kuile FO, Niessen L (2018) Socioeconomic health inequality in malaria indicators in rural western Kenya: evidence from a household malaria survey on burden and care-seeking behaviour. Malar J 17(1):166. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12936-018-2319-0
Were V, Buff AM, Desai M, Kariuki S, Samuels A, Phillips-Howard NLW (2019) Trends in malaria prevalence and health related socioeconomic inequality in rural western Kenya: results from repeated household malaria cross-sectional surveys from 2006 to 2013. BMJ Open 9(9):e033883. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2019-033883
WHO (2013) World malaria report 2013. World Health Organization, Geneva
Winskill P, Rowland M, Mtove G, Malima RC, Kirby MJ (2011) Malaria risk factors in north-east Tanzania. Malar J 10(1):98. https://doi.org/10.1186/1475-2875-10-98
Worrall E, Basu S, Hanson K (2005) Is malaria a disease of poverty? A review of the literature. Tropical Med Int Health 10(10):1047–1059. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-3156.2005.01476.x
Yang Y, Liu Y, Xie Z, Wu S, Yang L, Li W, Quan X (2018) Epidemiology of malaria in Yulin, South China 1999–2016: imported malaria threatens zero local case status. Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases 18(10):533–538. https://doi.org/10.1089/vbz.2017.2236
Acknowledgements
The authors gratefully acknowledge the many malaria registries worldwide and their staff for their willingness to contribute their data to this article.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
There are no conflicts of interest.
Financial support and sponsorship
Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran.
The ethics approval code is IR.KMU.REC.1398.505.
Additional information
Publisher’s note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Goodarzi, E., Beiranvand, R., Darvishi, I. et al. Geographical distribution of falciparum malaria in the world and its relationship with the human development index (HDI): countries based on the WHO report in 2017. J Public Health (Berl.) 30, 655–664 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10389-020-01336-6
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10389-020-01336-6