Malaria Prevention during Pregnancy
Improves
Health of Mothers and Babies
Roll Back Malaria (RBM)
partners launch new report and call for renewed commitment from health &
development community
(10 July 2014; New York) A new report
highlighting the impact of malaria interventions on maternal, newborn and child
health was launched today alongside the annual High-Level Segment of the United
Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) in New York.
The Contribution of Malaria Control to Maternal and Newborn
Health is the latest in
the Roll Back Malaria (RBM) Partnership’s Progress
& Impact Series to help assess progress towards
targets set out in the Global Malaria Action Plan (GMAP) and the United Nations
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
Co-authored by the
Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, the report includes contributions from
various Roll Back Malaria partners and shares evidence that intermittent preventive
malaria treatment during pregnancy and the use of insecticide-treated mosquito
nets (ITNs) can reduce the risk of death to malaria within the first 28 days of
life by 18%. Authors also highlight that these protective tools can decrease low
birth weight deliveries by 21%.
“Each year, there are an estimated 125 million
pregnancies in areas of high malaria transmission around the world, resulting
in some 83 million live births,” noted RBM’s acting Executive Director, Dr. Thomas
Teuscher. “Pregnant women in malaria endemic areas have a 50% higher risk of malaria
infection during pregnancy than non-pregnant women. We must do everything we
can to protect these precious moments and allow all women the opportunity to
safely carry and deliver their child without the risk of this killer disease.”
Between 2009 and
2012, an estimated 94,000 newborn deaths were averted as a result of the
scale-up of these malaria interventions during pregnancy. Countries attaining
high coverage and use of malaria control interventions during this period saw child
mortality rates fall by as much as to 20%. Effective roll-out and use of these proven
preventive measures contributes positively to the achievement of the MDGs –
especially those related to maternal health improvement and reduction of under-five
mortality – while also allowing progress against broader targets by
contributing to a healthier and more vibrant society.
Despite these
advances, malaria in pregnancy still exerts a heavy toll and contributes
largely to maternal and neonatal mortality. In Africa, 10,000 women and between
75,000 and 200,000 children under the age of one are estimated to die annually
as a consequence of malaria infection during pregnancy. Malaria is a major cause
of anaemia in pregnant women, and can lead to maternal death at delivery due to
haemorrhage. It is also responsible for stillbirth, preterm birth, and low birth
weight, which increases the risk of death within the first days of the child’s
life.
The notable results
outlined in the report have been achieved with generally low levels of intervention
coverage across sub-Saharan African countries, suggesting the highly effective
nature of malaria prevention efforts during pregnancy and the need for greater
collaboration to ensure stronger protection among this key population. Authors
note that an estimated 300,000 neonatal deaths could have been averted had an
80% coverage of these interventions been achieved between 2009 and 2012.
While launching the
report in New York, RBM partners called for renewed commitment and greater
collaboration between the maternal health and malaria communities to increase
access to interventions and maximize the impact of efforts. With some 500 days
until the 2015 deadline of the MDGs and a challenging financial landscape,
continued partnership to scale-up delivery of these life-saving interventions
will be critical to ensuring mothers and children are able to lead healthy
lives and contribute to their communities.
The report will be available online on 10 July at:
# # #
Media
Contact:
Mr. Hervé Verhoosel
RBM Representative in New York and Head of
External Relations
Mr. Trey Watkins
RBM External Relations Officer
About the Roll
Back Malaria Partnership (RBM)
The Roll Back
malaria Partnership was founded by UNICEF, WHO, UNDP and the World Bank in 1998
as a global framework to coordinate global action against malaria. Today, RBM
is a global public-private partnership made up of more than 500 organizations
across sectors that provides a neutral platform for consensus-building,
developing solutions to challenges in the implementation of malaria control
interventions and strategies, promotes high-level political commitment to keep
malaria at the top of the global agenda, and monitors progress towards
universal goals.
