Malaria has been a major disease of humankind for thousands of years. It is referred to in numerous biblical passages and in the writings of Hippocrates. Although drugs are available for treatment, malaria is still considered by many to be the most important infectious disease of humans: there are approximately 200 million to 500 million new cases each year in the world, and the disease is the direct cause of 1 million to 2.5 million deaths per year.
Malaria is caused by protozoa of the genus Plasmodium. Four species cause disease in humans: P falciparum, P vivax, P ovale and P malariae. Other species of plasmodia infect reptiles, birds and other mammals. Malaria is spread to humans by the bite of female mosquitoes of the genus Anopheles.
Copyright © 1996, The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston.