All About Malaria Transmission

To know all about malaria transmission, read this page then follow the links provided to other sources of information.

Q - How is malaria transmitted?

A - Bites of a female Anopheles mosquito are responsible for most of the transmission of malaria from one infected person to another. When a mosquito bites someone who is infected with malaria, it picks up the plasmodia (the parasites that cause malaria). These plasmodia then develop in the mosquito and when the mosquito bites an un-infected person, it transmits these parasites into the person's blood and then the malaria process starts in that person.

Q - Are there other ways of getting malaria apart from mosquito bites?

A - Malaria can be transmitted through blood transfusion if the blood donor has malaria. However, this is not a very common way of getting malaria.

It can also be transmitted through the placenta to an un-born child of a non-immune mother.

Malaria is not transmitted by airborne routes(sneezing, coughing, and inhaling) and I don't know of any evidence that proves that malaria can be transmitted through sex.

Q - Which parts of the World are the danger areas for Malaria?

A - Most countries in the tropics and sub-tropics are high risk areas for getting malaria. The countries in these areas fall into the "Malaria belt" which is the region around the equator that extends from South America through Africa, the Middle East and South-East Asia and are endemic with malaria.

Q - If I have been bitten by a mosquito, does that mean I WILL get malaria?

A - No! Not all mosquito bites eventually lead to malaria. The mosquito may not be carrying the malaria parasite at the time you were bitten by it. Remember that before a mosquito can transmit malaria to an individual, it has to first get it from another already infected person.

Q - How can malaria be prevented?

A - Malaria can be prevented by reducing the population of female anopheles mosquitoes, by preventing them from biting you and also by taking preventive malaria medications. Learn more about malaria prevention.

Q - How does the mosquito transmit malaria?

A -

1. The female Anopheles mosquito is responsible for Malaria transmission.
2. It transmits malaria from an infected person to an un-infected person.
3. It becomes infected when it feeds on human blood containing the sexual forms of the malaria parasite called gametocytes.
4. The parasite develops through some stages in its life cycle and then enters the salivary gland of the mosquito. The whole process in the mosquito takes from 7-20 days.
5. When the infected female anopheles mosquito bites a person, it injects some of its saliva in the blood. This saliva contains plasmodia sporozoites which can cause malaria in an un-infected person.

Q - How long does it take between a mosquito bite and the development of Malaria?

A - It could be as early as 8 days, or could be as late as 30 days after a bite depending on the specie of plasmodium (malaria parasite) that is transmitted. This period is known as the incubation period.

I hope the answers above have helped you in your quest to learn all about malaria transmission. As a final note, let me state that it would be impossible to know all about malaria transmission if you don't know this fact: Mosquitoes don't cause malaria, they only transmit it. Plasmodia cause malaria.

Created - October, 2006
Last Updated - August, 2009