Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Rome (Fides Service) – A survey among 1000 children from 0 to 15 years old in sub-Saharan country Burkina Faso where malaria is a serious problem, shows that the number of hospital deaths among children because of malaria, a disease which affects many African countries, is 3.5 times higher when the little patients have bacterial co-infections. Moreover, viral infections affect the number of deaths due to malaria. Recent studies show that the use of broad spectrum antibiotics and vaccination campaigns and better understanding of the biological mechanisms which render the plasmodio malaria carrying mosquito more aggressive, would make it possible to reduce considerably the number of infant deaths caused by malaria. (AP) (22/10/2003 Fides Service; lines:14 words:141)
