Climate Variability and Malaria Transmission: Unraveling the Complex Relationship

Abstract

Climate change, an emerging issue, significantly impacts international health, particularly malaria, a critical issue that affects tropical and subtropical areas. Researchers have identified climate variability as a major determinant of malaria transmission and distribution. This review aims to disentangle the interplay between climate variability and malaria transmission, with a focus on temperature, rainfall, humidity, and extreme weather events and their influence on the Anopheles mosquito and Plasmodium parasites' life cycles. Writing this review article involved consulting several scientific databases and compiling information from them. Thus, incorporating data from epidemiology, ecology, climatology, and public health, this paper aimed at integrating knowledge on how climatic factors influence malaria incidence, distribution, and transmission density. This study emphasizes the importance of cross-disciplinary approaches in addressing these issues and highlights the need for synergy in implementing climate change mitigation, improved health care systems, advanced surveillance, and community mobilization to mitigate and manage malaria in the changing climate. Awareness of the factors determining climate variability and their relationship with malaria transmission patterns is important in formulating adequate strategies to cushion the impact of climate change on malaria incidence and secure world health.