Evaluation of the use of Intermittent Preventive Therapy and Long Lasting Insecticidal Nets for Malaria Prevalence among Pregnant Women in Nkpor, Nigeria

Malaria is the world’s most important parasitic disease ranking among the major health and developmental challenges for the countries of the world [1]. Malaria is an infectious disease caused by the protozoan parasites of the genus Plasmodium, transmitted by a vector, an infected female Anopheles-mosquito [2]. Malaria in pregnancy is an enormous public health problem in the whole of sub-Saharan Africa. It has severe consequences for a pregnant woman and her unborn infant. An infant born to a mother with malaria is more likely to have low birth weight (LBW), which is the single greatest risk factor for death during the first months of life. The risk of maternal death also increases considerably as a pregnant woman suffering from malaria is likely to develop severe maternal anaemia [3]. Malaria mostly affects pregnant women living in rural areas where access to health care and effective malaria treatment is greatly hampered by the poor state of the formal health care system. The main strategies to reduce the burden of malaria in pregnancy are promotion of intermittent preventive treatment (IPT) which is the public health intervention aimed at treating and preventing malaria episodes and use of long lasting insecticidal nets (LLIN). These are nets treated in the factory with an insecticide incorporated into the net fabric through the antenatal clinic platform [4]. Although malaria during pregnancy puts all pregnant women at risk, clinical evidence shows that primigravidae are particularly more susceptible to severe forms of P. falciparum infection than multigravidae [5]. Absence of clinical symptoms such as fever makes it difficult to recognize the disease which therefore often remains untreated. Findings from clinical studies suggest that placental malaria is common and approximately one in four pregnant women has evidence of malaria infection at the time of delivery [6].