An international team of researchers in their new study warned people about a serious disease whose cases have increased significantly in recent years. We are talking about the so-called airport and luggage malaria, which usually comes from tropical climates. , experts also urged doctors to consider the possibility of malaria when diagnosing and treating unexplained symptoms.
According to a study by , in recent years in Europe increased the number of reports of malaria at airports and in luggage. This serious disease is usually found in tropical climates and in large areas of Africa, Asia, Central and South America, and parts of the Middle East, with it kills more than 400,000 people every year.
Malaria is most often transmitted to humans through the bite of an infected female Anopheles mosquito. Experts say that the disease can be effectively treated, but only if it is diagnosed in time. If it is found out too late, it can cause jaundice, anemia, kidney failure, seizures, coma, and sometimes death.
A team of researchers in their study focused on malaria, which appears at the airport and in luggage. This type of disease refers to an infection contracted by a person who has not recently traveled to a country or area with malaria. Instead, he gets it from a mosquito that was in the luggage or package.
The researchers stated that 145 cases were reported between 2018 and 2022, of which 105 were classified as airport malaria and 32 as luggage malaria. According to the findings, up to a third of reported cases since 2000 occurred between 2018 and 2022, with a peak in 2019. The majority of airport malaria cases were reported in France, Belgium and Germany. Most patients she worked near the international airport, while men fell ill more often.
Cases baggage malaria, which was much rarer, was most common in France, Italy, and Germany. As many as 9 times, a specific place was mentioned in the report, namely Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris. The researchers added that of the 133 cases with a known diagnosis, 124 patients recovered and nine died.
At the conclusion of the study, the researchers recommended that airlines in connection with the increase in the number of cases, they followed the disinfection procedures of the World Health Organization (WHO)which mandates the spraying of passenger cabins with pesticides, including toilet areas, and the cargo area. Experts have also urged doctors to consider malaria as a possible cause of the disease when treating them.
