Malaria in the world in 2010: What’s new about this old scourge?

Malaria remains in 2010 a major global public health problem. The disease is endemic in 108 countries around the world, causing up to 250 million clinical episodes and 863,000 deaths annually, mainly in Africa.

In the last decade, the increase of international funding available to finance malaria control activities has conditioned an unprecedented uptake of the different control tools available. Thus, millions of mosquito nets have been distributed among the most vulnerable populations in Africa, and new more potent and effective drugs have replaced those that had become obsolete in most endemic countries. As a result of these efforts, and for the first time in many years, we are witnessing a change in the epidemiology of this disease, with a decrease in its overall impact, and consequently a reduction in its associated morbidity and mortality. These developments have encouraged the scientific community to reconsider the possibility of eradicating the disease globally. However, despite the prevailing optimism, this goal will be impossible without the development of new and more effective control tools, and does not seem realistic to envisage them in the short-term. These efforts must be accompanied by a scientific research agenda that will serve both as a guideline for the design of new interventions, and also as a mechanism for monitoring the progress made. If malaria is to be eradicated, long-term commitments will be necessary, in parallel with greater efforts to strengthen the fragile health systems in countries where the disease is a problem.

This article reviews the malaria situation in the light of the current efforts for its global elimination.