Workers bring back malaria from other countries_美文

Workers bring back malaria from other countries

Many laborers from China are working in shabby environments in other countries and are often exposed to mosquitoes. They bring back the disease as they return home for reunions, said Zhou Xiaonong, deputy director of the National Institute of Parasitic Diseases under the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

According to the center, provinces where more laborers have gone to work in other countries, such as Anhui, Jiangsu and Liaoning provinces, often see more deadly cases.

East China's Jiangsu province has seen a sharp increase of malaria cases for seven years running, and reported 350 cases in 2011, the highest in the country.

In response to the steep rise of imported malaria cases, the province established a system of weekly reporting and analysis by experts. By the end of March, the province had reported 180 cases of imported malaria cases, 91 percent of them pernicious malaria.

"Our research found that 97 percent of the cases come from 25 countries in Africa, mainly concentrated in Nigeria, Equatorial Guinea and Angola," said Gao Qi, director of the Jiangsu Province Parasitic Diseases Institute.

More than 83 percent of those patients, almost all males between 30 and 50, are workers, Gao said.

"And 90 percent of them were dispatched abroad through companies, such as construction companies," he said.

"Malaria can actually be cured as long as it is discovered early and given proper treatment. However, many deaths happen due to late diagnosis," Gao said, noting that it is important to improve doctors' awareness of the disease in small and local hospitals.