Surveillance of malaria

Learn about malaria surveillance.

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How many cases are there of malaria in Canada?

Severe malaria is not common in Canada.

Canada sees an average of 488 malaria cases per year spread across the country.

From 2010 to 2014, the number of cases ranged from 447 to 516 each year.

How many cases are there of malaria around the world?

According to the World Health Organization, worldwide in 2015, there were:

  • 214 million cases
  • 438,000 deaths

Most victims are children living in Africa, where a child dies every minute from malaria. Childhood malaria deaths have been lowered by nearly 60% since 2000 due to global efforts.

Of the total malaria cases around the world:

  • 18 countries account for 80% of cases
  • 34% of cases in 2013 were in:
    • Nigeria
    • the Democratic Republic of Congo

The epidemiology of malaria:

  • is complex
  • may vary considerably within relatively small geographical areas

Major epidemiologic determinants that have been identified include:

  • temperature
  • level of rainfall
  • distribution of mosquito breeding sites
  • immunologic and genetic makeup of the population
  • species of parasite and mosquito in the community at risk
  • use of antimalarial drugs and application of other control measures

How does Canada monitor malaria?

Each Canadian Malaria Network (CMN) centre provides surveillance data on severe malaria cases treated with antimalarial drugs administered by injection. 

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