Learn what a typical Malaria prevention prognosis is at Consumer Reports Health.

Malaria prevention

What will happen to me?

Most travelers get sick from malaria only after they get back home. You should recover completely if you are treated without delay. But there is a risk of dying from malaria if you don't get the right treatment.

It usually takes 10 to 14 days for malaria to develop once a mosquito bite has passed the parasite on to you.

Source:
Stürchler D.
Global epidemiology of malaria.
In: Schlagenhauf P (editor). Traveler's malaria. BC Decker, Hamilton, Ontario; 2001.

¹ But some types of malaria can take much longer to develop. Malaria caused by Plasmodium malariae takes about 28 days. Some types take six months to 18 months before you get any symptoms.

Source:
Taylor TE, Strickland GT.
Malaria.
In: Strickland GT (editor). Hunter's tropical medicine and emerging infectious diseases. 8th edition. WB Saunders, Philadelphia, U.S.A.; 2000.

If you have been to a country where malaria is common, you should suspect malaria if you get a feverish illness. If this happens, you should go to your doctor right away.

Around 9 in 10 people first get symptoms of malaria when they are back home.

Source:
Kain KC, Keystone JS.
Malaria in travellers: epidemiology, disease and prevention.
Infectious Disease Clinics of North America. 1998; 12: 267-284.

³
About 3 in 10 people get symptoms of malaria at least two months after their return.

Source:
Schwartz E, Parise M, Kozarsky P, et al.
Delayed onset of malaria: implications for chemoprophylaxis in travelers.
New England Journal of Medicine. 2003; 349: 1510-1516.

⁴
About 9 in 10 people recover completely if they are generally healthy and their malaria is diagnosed and treated right away.

Source:
Miller SA, Bergman BP, Croft AM.
Epidemiology of malaria in the British Army from 1982-1996.
Journal of the Royal Army Medical Corps. 1999; 145: 20-22.

⁵
Malaria may be more serious for older travelers.

In the United States between 1966 and 1984, the number of travelers dying from malaria was:

Source:
Greenberg AE, Lobel HO.
Mortality from Plasmodium falciparum malaria in travelers from the United States, 1959 to 1987.
Annals of Internal Medicine. 1990; 113: 326-327.

⁶

1 in 1,000 people under 19 years old
20 in 1,000 people aged between 20 and 39
60 in 1,000 people aged between 40 and 69
30 in 1,000 people aged between 70 and 79.

Malaria caused by the Plasmodium falciparum parasite is the most likely to cause complications and death. This happens because the parasite damages your

red blood cells
Red blood cells are the part of your blood that makes it red. Their main job is to carry oxygen from your heart and lungs out to the tissues of your body. Once these cells unload oxygen, they pick up carbon dioxide. They take carbon dioxide back to your lungs so you can breathe it out of your body.

red blood cells. This means:

Important organs like the kidneys stop working
Your blood circulation system stops working.

You might get convulsions (

seizure
A seizure is a sudden spasm of muscles caused by too much electrical activity in the brain. It results in muscle twitching and other symptoms.

seizures) and then fall into a coma and die.

Complications and death from malaria usually happen only if you don't get the right treatment or if treatment isn't started soon enough.

Source:
Miller SA, Bergman BP, Croft AM.
Epidemiology of malaria in the British Army from 1982-1996.
Journal of the Royal Army Medical Corps. 1999; 145: 20-22.

⁵ Your malaria shouldn't come back if you are treated properly the first time.

Sources for the information on this page:

Stürchler D.Global epidemiology of malaria.In: Schlagenhauf P (editor). Traveler's malaria. BC Decker, Hamilton, Ontario; 2001.

Taylor TE, Strickland GT.Malaria.In: Strickland GT (editor). Hunter's tropical medicine and emerging infectious diseases. 8th edition. WB Saunders, Philadelphia, U.S.A.; 2000.

Kain KC, Keystone JS.Malaria in travellers: epidemiology, disease and prevention.Infectious Disease Clinics of North America. 1998; 12: 267-284.

Schwartz E, Parise M, Kozarsky P, et al.Delayed onset of malaria: implications for chemoprophylaxis in travelers.New England Journal of Medicine. 2003; 349: 1510-1516.

Miller SA, Bergman BP, Croft AM.Epidemiology of malaria in the British Army from 1982-1996.Journal of the Royal Army Medical Corps. 1999; 145: 20-22.

Greenberg AE, Lobel HO.Mortality from Plasmodium falciparum malaria in travelers from the United States, 1959 to 1987.Annals of Internal Medicine. 1990; 113: 326-327.

This information was last updated on May 11, 2009

This information is for educational use only, and is not a substitute for prompt professional medical advice. Readers should always consult a physician or other professional for advice and treatment.
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