Casos notificados de malária no Estado do Pará, Amazônia Brasileira, de 1998 a 2006

Abstract

The aim of this study was to carry out a survey of malaria cases reported in the state of Pará from 1998 to 2006 in order to quantify the risk of disease transmission, to discriminate the number of cases by Plasmodium species and to determine the areas of greater incidence. Among 5,454.700 blood samples examined, 27.58% tested positive (22.38% Plasmodium falciparum; 76.11% Plasmodium vivax; 0.31% Plasmodium malariae and 1.20% mixed infections of P. falciparum and P. vivax). A gradual reduction in notifications was observed, beginning in 2001. In seven cities there was a high Annual Parasite Incidence (API) between 1998 and 2006 and another 31 had average API of ≥50 over nine years. There was an increase in the number of cities with average or low API values. In summary, the state of Pará witnessed a significant reduction in the notification of malaria cases, with an increased trend in cities with low and average API values. This is probably a result of government actions for malaria control and prevention in that region.