Article by Eric Worrell
Malaria was endemic in Northern Europe and the United States during the Little Ice Age. But most people don’t realize how prevalent malaria was in previous centuries because our ancestors called it “Ague.”
European medical schools to provide more training on climate crisis-related diseases
New climate network will teach trainee doctors more about heat stroke, dengue fever and malaria and the role of global warming on health
Kat Lay Global Health Reporter Monday 14 October 2024 17:00 AEDT
In the face of the climate crisis, mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue and malaria will become an important part of medical school curricula across Europe.
Future doctors will also receive more training on how to recognize and treat heat stroke and are expected to consider the climate impact of treatments such as asthma inhalers, medical school leaders said, announcing the launch of the European Climate and Health Education Network (ENCHE) .
Led by the University of Glasgow, 25 medical schools from countries including the UK, Belgium and France will integrate climate courses into the education of more than 10,000 students.
Dr Camille Husser, co-chair of the network and from the University of Glasgow, said: “Doctors of the future will see a range of different presentations and diseases that they don't see now. They need to be aware of this so they can recognize them.
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Learn more: https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2024/oct/14/european-network-climate-health-education-medical-schools-diseases-students-dengue-malaria-heatrinkle
The problem with calling a disease like malaria a “climate change” disease is that malaria thrives in colder climates without any problem.
Endemic malaria: an “indoor” disease in northern Europe. Historical data analysis
Lena Holden 1.✉Larry Holden 2Kari Heliovara 1
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PMCID: PMC1090613 PMID: 15847704
background
In 2019, malaria prevalence in northern Europe reached 68° north latitudeth During the 20th century, average summer temperatures only occasionally exceeded 16°C, the lower limit required for sporulation to occur. Plasmodium vivax. Finland is suitable for analysis of endemic malaria and temperature due to the available historical data and the sparse use of quinine.
method
The annual frequency of malaria deaths extracted from parish records between 1800 and 1870 was analyzed based on long-term temperature records from Finland, Russia and Sweden. Supporting data from 1750 to 1799 are used to interpret the results. Explain the life cycle and behavior of Anopheles mosquitoes based on the literature.
result
Malaria incidence is closely related to the average temperature in June and July of the previous summer, corresponding to the development of vector larvae. Adult hatching peaks in mid-August, when temperatures in most years are too cold for adult spore development Plasmodium. After mating, some females hibernate in human residences. If a female acquires gametocytes from an infected human, Plasmodium Continue only indoors, in heated buildings.
in conclusion
Northern malaria occurs in cold climates and is transmitted by human dormant summer dormants and semi-active hibernating mosquitoes indoors throughout the winter. Variable climatic conditions did not affect this relationship. However, epidemics are controlled by mosquito populations, which are ultimately controlled by temperatures from the previous summer.
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Learn more: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC1090613/
Malaria incidence has recently increased in Europe. So if climate change is not the main driver, what is causing the recent rise in malaria cases?
from the American Society for Microbiology;
The history of malaria in the United States
September 15, 2023
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although Malaria infection remains widespread in sub-Saharan and parts of Oceania, such as Papua New Guinea, before 1880s The disease has also emerged from areas where it is no longer consistently spreading, including the United States. Recent cases of malaria in southern U.S. states have raised concerns about future outbreaks, climate change and the possibility of continued transmission in areas where the disease is no longer endemic.
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The CDC reports that these cases of locally acquired malaria are the first in the United States in the past 20 years. Malaria often reappears in the United States through imported cases after individuals travel to a country. Malaria endemic areas or countries. However, Locally acquired cases of malaria may occur because the Anopheles mosquito vector (which transmits the disease to humans) does exist throughout the United States Importantly, as COVID-19 travel restrictions are lifted, there are more opportunities for international travel. If a person becomes infected in an endemic country, it is possible for infected people (with or without symptoms) to spread the disease locally. For example, in 2003, eight locally acquired cases of P. vivax malaria were identified in Palm Beach County, Florida.
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Those in the global malaria community are reaching a dangerous tipping point; previous progress made by COVID-19 has stalled and the countries hardest hit by the disease are facing multiple fronts in the infectious disease war. Likewise, ongoing climate change around the world affects the ability of vectors (mosquitoes, ticks, flies, etc.) to expand their geographic range into areas with susceptible populations to malaria and other infectious diseases, and continues to create continued and new disease vector transmission areas where disease spreads.
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Learn more: https://asm.org/articles/2023/september/the-history-of-malaria-in-the-united-states
While the CDC article above does bow to climate change, two things are very clear:
- this mosquito Carrying malaria yes Already popular in the United Statesand has been around for a long time.
- The main source of malaria in the United States and other countries such as Europe is Infected people from malaria hotspots.
My point is that climate change will not make malaria endemic in temperate Western countries. Malaria-carrying mosquitoes thrive without problems in any climate with water and summer temperatures of at least 16 degrees Celsius (61 degrees Fahrenheit).
Anyone who thinks mosquitoes can't thrive in Arctic climates has never been to the Arctic—many mosquitoes can carry malaria and are a terrible nuisance at certain times of the year at high latitudes. Calling malaria a tropical disease, implying that malaria requires a tropical climate for its reproduction, is a gross distortion of the facts. Teaching doctors that climate change causes malaria is as absurd as teaching doctors how to use magic to cure fevers.
Shakespeare himself may have died of malaria. According to Wikipedia, “…Half a century later, John Ward, the vicar of Stratford, wrote in his notebook: “Shakespeare, Drayton and Ben Jonson had a pleasant meeting, and seemed to have drunk too much. ,because Shakespeare died of fever Contracted there…”.
Relevant
