primary
- After years of steady decline, the number of malaria cases is on the rise again.
- The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the fight against the disease.
According to a new study reported by RFI, mosquitoes don’t necessarily only bite at night, contrary to popular belief. A discovery likely to improve the fight against diseases transmitted by these insects, such as malaria, that plague Africa.
Picks
“Why has the incidence of malaria in Africa stagnated for several years? Whereas with the distribution of insecticide-treated nets there was initially a rather staggering decrease in the incidence of malaria?” , Before starting their work published Tuesday, May 17th in the scientific journal, the researchers asked Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
Supposing it may have come from mosquitoes, they organized, for a year in Bangui, skin picking. “Every time a mosquito lands on the skin, the volunteer uses a tube to catch the mosquito, so it knows when that mosquito has tried to bite it.” Scientists say.
20 to 30% of bites occur during the day
calendar : “To our great surprise, a third of the bites occurred throughout the day, during daylight hours and especially indoors, when no one considered this time window as a potential window for malaria transmission,” they ask. More precisely, 20-30% of bites occurred during the day. why ? mystery.
The first symptoms of malaria – fever, headache, and chills – usually appear 10 to 15 days after the infectious bite and can be mild and difficult to recognize. In the absence of a cure for this disease It can develop into a serious or even fatal condition within 24 hours.
