NEW THIS WEDNESDAY: ELIMINATION OF MALARIA AND LYMPHATIC FILARIASIS ON HISPANIOLA

Tuesday, 27th of August 2013

ELIMINATION OF MALARIA AND LYMPHATIC FILARIASIS ON HISPANIOLA

Excerpt from “Meeting of the International Task Force for Disease Eradication,” http://www.who.int/wer/2013/wer8807.pdf

Hispaniola is the only Caribbean island where malaria persists, and >90% of the LF cases remaining in the Americas are found there. After the ITFDE first recommended elimination of these 2 diseases from the Dominican Republic and Haiti in 2006, the Carter Center funded an 18-month demonstration project in October 2008 to foster binational cooperation in controlling malaria in 2 adjacent communities on the border between these countries (Dajabon, in Dominican Republic, and Ouanaminthe, in Haiti). A year later, both governments announced a jointly prepared US$ 194 million binational plan to eliminate malaria by 2020, and Haiti announced a US$ 49.4 million plan to eliminate LF by 2020. The Dominican Republic expected to eliminate LF in 2010. A single outbreak of malaria in 2004 cost the Dominican Republic an estimated US$ 200 million in lost tourism revenues.

Progress has resumed following a temporary lull because of the earthquake in Haiti in 2010, with the fight against LF advancing more rapidly than that against malaria.

Haiti, which provided annual mass drug administration (MDA) for LF to about 66% of its targeted communes in 2009, launched MDA in Port-au-Prince for the first time in October 2011, and effectively extended MDA for LF to its entire population at risk in 2012. Immunochromatographic tests for circulating antigens conducted at 6 sentinel sites in Haiti appear to show significant reductions in LF prevalence after 2–5 years of MDA, compared with levels before MDA. Haitis main external partners in combating LF are: the United States Agency for International Development (support provided through Research Triangle International and Interchurch Medical Assistance World Health); the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (support provided through the University of Notre Dame); the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (support provided to Ministry of Public Health and Population); the InterAmerican Development Bank; AbbVie, Cargill, Inc.; and an anonymous private family foundation. The Dominican Republic has interrupted transmission of LF in 2 of its last 3 endemic foci, and will begin MDA in the final East focus in March/April 2013 with support provided by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO)/WHO.

The Dominican Republic reduced its total number of reported cases of malaria by 35% between 2010 and 2011, from 2482 cases to 1616 cases. Haiti reduced its reported cases of malaria by 13%, from 84 153 to 72 875 over the same period. Haiti distributed 3.4 million longlasting insecticidal nets in 2012 with funding from the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Both national programmes have some funding for malaria from the Global Fund through 2014, but not enough to carry out everything needed to achieve their goal. The countries continue to cooperate in combating malaria and sharing experiences, having convened 3 binational quarterly meetings in 2012, with support provided by the Carter Center.