Korean J Parasitol.
2018 Dec;56(6):531-543. 10.3347/kjp.2018.56.6.531.
Epidemiological Characteristics of Re-emerging Vivax Malaria in the Republic of Korea (1993–2017)
- Affiliations
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- 1Department of Biotechnology, College of Biomedical and Health Science, Konkuk University, Chungju 27478, Korea.
- 2Insitute of Research and Development, Scorpiogen Co., Hankyong National University, Anseong 17579, Korea.
- 3Department of Parasitology and Tropical Medicine and Institute of Health Sciences, Gyeongsang National University College of Medicine, Jinju 52727, Korea.
- 4Department of Medicine, Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism, UAB Comprehensive Diabetes Center, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA.
- 5Korea Health Evaluation Institute, Sahmyook University, Seoul 01795, Korea.
- 6Department of Parasitology and Tropical Medicine, Inha University School of Medicine, Incheon 22212, Korea. tongsookim@inha.ac.kr
- KMID: 2441613
- DOI: http://doi.org/10.3347/kjp.2018.56.6.531
Abstract
- Historically, Plasmodium vivax malaria has been one of the most highly endemic parasitic diseases in the Korean Peninsula. Until the 1970s, vivax malaria was rarely directly lethal and was controlled through the Korean Government Program administered by the National Malaria Eradication Service in association with the World Health Organization's Global Malaria Eradication Program. Vivax malaria has re-emerged in 1993 near the Demilitarized Zone between South and North Korea and has since become an endemic infectious disease that now poses a serious public health threat through local transmission in the Republic of Korea. This review presents major lessons learned from past and current malaria research, including epidemiological and biological characteristics of the re-emergent disease, and considers some interesting patterns of diversity. Among other features, this review highlights temporal changes in the genetic makeup of the parasitic population, patient demographic features, and spatial distribution of cases, which all provide insight into the factors contributing to local transmission. The data indicate that vivax malaria in Korea is not expanding exponentially. However, continued surveillance is needed to prevent future resurgence.
