Malaria Elimination Program: Absence of asymptomatic malaria and low parasitic in endemic area of Rudan district, Hormozgan Province, Iran

Introduction: Malaria is a major global public health problem and a leading cause ofmorbidity and mortality in many countries. Malaria elimination is the common goal ofWorld Health Organization and the health system in Iran. Following a decline in malariacases in recent years, the malaria elimination program, technically supported by theWHO, has initiated since 2009 in Iran. In order to successfully implement a malariaelimination program, all positive cases particularly low parasitemia and asymptomaticcases are required to be detected. The main objective of this study was to identifyasymptomatic malaria infection in a low transmission area in Rudan district, HormozganProvince, southern Iran.Methods: In this cross-sectional study a total of 200 blood samples were randomlycollected from symptomless residents of Rudan to evaluate Plasmodium infection ratewhere microscope, RDT and nested-PCR techniques were used.Results: According to the analysis of microscopic methods, RDT and Nested-PCR, noasymptomatic cases were seen among the participants.Conclusion: The results of this investigation reveal that Malaria Elimination Program isadministrable in Rudan district irrespective of low-parasitemia and asymptomatic cases.

Keywords:

Asymptomatic Malaria , Malaria Elimination , Plasmodium