Cohort trial reveals community impact of insecticide-treated nets on malariometric indices in urban Ghana.

The efficacy of insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) in prevention of malaria and anaemia has been shown in rural settings, but their impact in urban settings is unknown. We carried out an ITN intervention in two communities in urban Accra, Ghana, where local malaria transmission is known to occur. There was evidence for a mass or community effect, despite ITN use by fewer than 35% of households.

Low birth weight and fetal anaemia as risk factors for infant morbidity in rural Malawi.

Low birth weight (LBW) and fetal anaemia (FA) are common in malaria endemic areas. To investigate the incidence of infectious morbidity in infants in rural Malawi in relation to birth weight and fetal anaemia, a cohort of babies was followed for a year on the basis of LBW (<2500) and FA (cord haemoglobin < 12.5 g/dl).

Antimalarial drugs in pregnancy: a review.

In this review we examine the available information on the safety of antimalarials in pregnancy, from both animal and human studies. The antimalarials that can be used in pregnancy include (1) chloroquine, (2) amodiaquine, (3) quinine, (4) azithromycin, (5) sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine, (6) mefloquine, (7) dapsone-chlorproguanil, (8) artemisinin derivatives, (9) atovaquone-proguanil and (10) lumefantrine. Antimalarial drugs that should not be used in pregnancy including (1) halofantrine, (2) tetracycline/doxycycline, and (3) primaquine.

Urban malaria and anaemia in children: a cross-sectional survey in two cities of Ghana.

Objective: To describe the epidemiology of urban malaria, an emerging problem in sub-Saharan Africa.

Method: Cross-sectional surveys of communities in Accra and Kumasi, Ghana, determining risk factors for malaria infection and anaemia in children aged 6-60 months.

Results: Malaria prevalence rates ranged from 2% to 33% between urban communities.

Comparative efficacy of chloroquine and sulphadoxine--pyrimethamine in pregnant women and children: a meta-analysis.

Objective: To compare the efficacy of chloroquine and sulphadoxine-pyremethamine against Plasmodium falciparum infection in pregnant women and in children from the same endemic areas of Africa, with the aim of determining the level of correspondence in efficacy determinations in these two risk groups.

Methods: Meta-analysis of nine published and unpublished in vivo antimalarial efficacy studies in pregnant women and in children across five African countries.

Results: Pregnant women (all gravidae) were more likely to be sensitive than children to both chloroquine (odds ratio: 2.