PREVALENCE OF PLASMODIUM FALCIPARUM, MALARIAL PARASITE IN MUZAFFARGARH DISTRICT, PUNJAB-PAKISTAN: A TWO YEAR STUDY

Malaria is well known for its fatalities worldwide and in case of Pakistan; it is still endemic in many areas. Two species of Plasmodium namely the Plasmodium vivax and the Plasmodium falciparum are reported from Pakistan. P. vivax is too widespread, creating lots of morbidities across the country. P. falciparum, on the other hand, is though comparatively narrow in its infectious volume but yet a serious cause of mortalities in Pakistan. A two year survey was conducted from November-2008 to October-2010 in a high malaria-hit district Muzaffargarh. Thick and thin blood smears were made at the Rural Health Center (RHC), Sinawan, where the microscopic examination was carried out. The overall reported cases at RHC included 10,028 suspected malaria cases, of which, 208 were confirmed as P. falciparum patients. It was made out that malaria cases reported in age group (16-30) years were significantly higher (P<0.001), among which males were victimized significantly more (P<0.001) than the females. The overall P. falciparum positivity rate throughout the survey interval was 2.07%. It was 0.47% in the 1 st year of the research, while in the 2 nd year it increased significantly (P<0.001) and reached to 2.69%. This rapid increase was caused by the heavy floods hitting Punjab during the research span. The data were analyzed through software SPSS version 19 and chisquare analysis was applied. Regression analysis was used to predict percentage on the basis of age group. This research work evidences that P. falciparum is steadily becoming more dangerous and deadly in rural areas of Punjab in general, and in the Muzaffargarh district in particular. It is therefore highly necessary to take immediate and effective measures to minimize death toll in these areas.