Malaria kills 200,000 Indians each year, according to a new study
(October 22, 2010) A study by the Centre for Global Health Research (CGHR) in Toronto
(Canada) revealed that more than 200,000 people die of malaria in India each year,
far more than the 15,000 deaths estimated by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
CGHR researchers based their estimate on interviews with family members of more than
122,000 people who died between 2001 and 2003. The numbers “greatly exceed” the WHO
estimates of 15,000 malaria deaths, the researchers wrote in their study, which was
published today in the journal The Lancet. Malaria infects about 250 million people
every year, killing almost 1 million, mostly children in Africa, this according to
the WHO. It is the world’s third-deadliest infectious disease behind AIDS and tuberculosis.
The study published by The Lancet shows instead that malaria kills far more people
than previously thought, said one of the study authors, Prabhat Jha, who noted, “This
is the first nationwide study that has collected information on causes of death directly
from communities.” The discrepancy is probably attributable to the fact that WHO
relies on confirmed cases, with data restricted to those who seek care at health facilities.
In addition, statistics are also limited to a few high prevalent States (Orissa, Chhattisgarh,
and Jharkhand) and India’s northeast regions. The study reported in The Lancet found
that most deaths are in rural area, where people hardly seek medical assistance.