Abstract
Introduction. Malaria had been eliminated in Tunisia since 1979, but there are currently 40 to 50 imported cases annually. Soldiers are no exception as the incidence of imported malaria is increasing in Tunisian military personnel after returning from malaria-endemic area, often in Sub-Saharan Africa. Methods. We retrospectively analyzed the clinical and biological presentations, treatment, and outcomes of 37 Tunisian military personnel hospitalized at the Department of Internal Medicine, the Military Hospital of Tunis, between January 1993 and January 2011, for imported malaria. The clinical and laboratory features were obtained from the medical records and a questionnaire was filled by the patients about the compliance of malaria prophylaxis. Results. Thirty-seven male patients, with a mean age of 41 years, were treated for malaria infection. Twenty-two were due to Plasmodium falciparum. The outcome was favourable for all patients, despite two severe access. The long-term use of chemoprophylaxis has been adopted by only 21 (51%) of expatriate military for daily stresses. Moreover, poor adherence was found in 32 patients. Conclusion. The risk of acquiring malaria infection in Tunisian military personnel can largely be prevented by the regular use of chemoprophylactic drugs combined with protective measures against mosquito bites.
Highlights
Malaria had been eliminated in Tunisia since 1979, but there are currently 40 to 50 imported cases annually
The aim of this paper is to review the literature about imported malaria in soldiers and to assess the compliance of malaria prophylaxis among the soldiers in our military hospital in the department of internal medicine during the period from January 1993 to January 2011
The malaria prophylaxis was based on mefloquine at a dose of 250 1 tab/week began a week before departure and continued
Summary
Malaria had been eliminated in Tunisia since 1979, but there are currently 40 to 50 imported cases annually. Data emerging from WHO reports just estimate malaria incidence and mortality, reporting malarial cases and malarial death from the different WHO regions, collected by ministries of health of different countries. These data do not reflect the real incidence in the general population [2]. The returned infected militaries are a source of parasite and may lead to the reappearance of malaria in countries where it was previously eradicated. It essentially reflects a misapplication of prophylactic measures
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