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Control of Malaria During Pregnancy: Preventive Strategies. Intermittent Preventive Treatment and Insecticide-Treated Nets

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Synonyms

Complications of malaria; Effects of malaria on the neonate; Malaria in pregnancy; Placental malaria; Severe malaria

Definition

The two primary interventions used to prevent malaria in pregnancy are defined here:

  1. 1.

    Intermittent preventive treatment of malaria in pregnancy (IPTp) to reduce malaria infection and its consequences was proven efficacious in the 1990s (Schultz et al. 1994; Parise et al. 1998) and was subsequently recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) for sub-Saharan African countries where malaria is endemic. IPTp is the provision of a curative dose of an antimalarial drug during pregnancy, irrespective of whether or not malaria parasites are present at the time of treatment. IPTp clears malaria parasites that may be present in the peripheral circulation or sequestered in the placenta and provides a period of chemoprophylaxis, thereby preventing new malaria infections.

  2. 2.

    Insecticide-treated bed nets (ITN) provide a physical barrier and an insecticidal...

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Acknowledgements

The conclusions, findings, and opinions expressed by the authors do not necessarily reflect the official position of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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Correspondence to Mary J. Hamel .

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Hamel, M.J., D’Alessandro, U. (2015). Control of Malaria During Pregnancy: Preventive Strategies. Intermittent Preventive Treatment and Insecticide-Treated Nets. In: Hommel, M., Kremsner, P. (eds) Encyclopedia of Malaria. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-8757-9_71-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-8757-9_71-1

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