By NewsDesk  @infectiousdiseasenews

According to 2nd Quarter 2021 data from the World Health Organization (WHO) Mekong Malaria Elimination Program published October 1, the Greater Mekong subregion (GMS) reported 12,454 malaria cases from April to June 2021.

Malaria life cycle/CDC

The data shows Plasmodium falciparum and mixed cases were down 69 percent from the same period in 2020, while Plasmodium vivax cases were down 34 percent during the same period.

Information on the individual countries are as follows:

Cambodia reported 596 cases, a 74% decrease compared to the same time period in 2020. P. falciparum + mixed cases and P. vivax constituted 10% and 90% of cases, respectively.

Yunnan province, China reported 47 P. vivax cases and 0 P. falciparum + mixed cases. Among those, no indigenous cases were reported.

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Lao People’s Democratic Republic reported 805 cases, a 103% increase compared to the same time period in 2020. P. falciparum + mixed cases and P. vivax constituted 55% and 45% of cases respectively.

Myanmar reported 9763 cases of which 7% were P. falciparum + mixed cases and 93% were P. vivax. Only partial data was available for Myanmar during this period.

Thailand reported 1102 cases, a 33% decrease compared to the same time period in 2020. P. falciparum + mixed cases and P. vivax constituted 2% and 95% of cases, respectively.

Viet Nam reported 141 cases, a 54% decrease compared to the same time period in 2020. P. falciparum + mixed cases and P. vivax constituted 36% and 64% of cases, respectively.

The Mekong Malaria Elimination (MME) programme is an initiative which supports malaria elimination across 6 countries of the Greater Mekong subregion (GMS) – Cambodia, China (Yunnan Province), the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Myanmar, Thailand and Viet Nam. MME was established in 2017 as a reaction to the Emergency Response to Artemisinin Resistance, a high-level plan of attack launched in 2013 to contain the spread of drug-resistant parasites and provide life-saving interventions for all GMS populations at risk of malaria.

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