By NewsDesk  @infectiousdiseasenews

Since our last report one month ago, the number of malaria cases in Burundi has increased nearly one million cases.

Image/CDC

Since December 2018 through September 2019, health officials have reported 6,831,659 total malaria cases in the country, including 2,545 deaths.

In just the latest week reported, the week ending September 29, 121,704 cases including 32 deaths have been reported. There is a 49 % increase in the number of cases reported in week 39 of 2019 compared to the same period in 2018.

Malaria in Burundi: Epidemic prompts travel notice

According to the latest numbers from the World Health Organization, there were an estimated 219 million cases and 435,000 related deaths in 2017.

Most malaria cases in 2017 were in Africa (200 million or 92%), followed by South-East Asia with 5% of the cases and the Eastern Mediterranean Region with 2%.

Children aged under 5 years are the most vulnerable group affected by malaria. In 2017, they accounted for 61% (266 000) of all malaria deaths worldwide.


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