Loading...
Children account for 10% to 20% of the approximately 2000 cases of imported malaria in the United States each year. To identify risk factors, these researchers reviewed medical records of 171 pediatric patients (112 of whom were U.S. residents who had traveled abroad) seen at 9 U.S. hospitals for malaria between 2009 and 2023.
Of the U.S. residents, 46% received pretravel counseling, and 73% of these had been prescribed region-appropriate antimalarial prophylaxis, but only 11% of those with prescriptions adhered to them.
Most cases were diagnosed in summer, and 90% were in children who had visited countries in West Africa.
63% of patients were male, and most were school-age or older (6–20 years of age).
Most (88%) presented wit…