Severe Malaria in Contemporary Times: Etiologies, Tools, and Translational Research

Dear Colleagues,

The health burden of malaria is the sum of a myriad of complex component parts from parasite species and intraspecies diversity, through location, climate, economics, and infrastructures to informed care options for the severely ill. 

The complexity and geographic spread of malaria are reflected in the disjointed and indeed limited information available to specifically tackle the urgent medical needs of the acutely ill.

The most recent figures released by the World Health Organization (WHO) to evaluate the global burden of malaria (2020) are: 241 million cases, 95% of which are in the WHO African region; 627,000 deaths, 96% in the WHO African Region and 80% of those in children younger than 5 years old.  The numbers are grim and translate into at least 501,600 children under the age of 5 years having died in the year 2020 as a direct result of acute malaria.  This represents 8% of all deaths globally in 1–59-month-olds; however, the numbers for malaria deaths in this age group are not global but concentrated in the malaria endemic areas of African nations.

Children, pregnant women, and the unborn are most vulnerable to malaria in endemic areas, and one Plasmodium species in particular is the most harmful: Plasmodium falciparum.

This Special Issue on ‘Severe Malaria’ aims to assemble a collection of articles and reviews representing the multiple disciplines striving to reduce the health burden of malaria and, in particular, those focusing on malaria pathophysiology, anemia, and translational pathways to benefit human health. How can we best develop therapies to save those acutely ill with severe malaria?

Dr. Janet Cox-Singh
Guest Editor

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