Clinical Microbiology: Open Access

Retrospective study of the chagas and malaria situation in Ecuador for the last 20 years

3^rd International Conference on Clinical Microbiology & Microbial Genomics

September 24-26, 2014 Valencia Convention Centre, Spain

Maria Jose Alulema and Monica Cartelle Gestal

Posters: Clin Microbial

Abstract:

Chagas mainly occurs in South America and Ecuador is especially vulnerable to Trypanosomacruzi. Malaria is one of the most important parasitic infections in the world and has caused 660000 deaths in 2010. Transmission occurs principally during the wet season when the mosquito Anopheles carrying the malaria bites a host. It is endemic in Ecuador which makes more difficult to eradicate the diseases. The aim of this study is to analyze the situation of Ecuador and if the prevention campaigns have been effective. Malaria has been increasing since 2001, after it started to decrease significantly. The control campaigns started in 2000 (DTT and insecticide treated nets) and it has been really effective and this had a big impact in the reduction of the number of cases. Still some isolated cases are being reported and these are normally in Esmeraldas and other coast regions. The number of isolates of Trypanosoma spp. has been slowly decreasing. In 2008 no cases were reported, but a sporadic small outbreak was reported in 2009, since then no cases were reported. The Ecuadorian government had successfully controlled several tropical diseases while other countries in South America are still dealing with high levels. This probably is link to the big monetary increase that is happening in the country, increasing not just the cultural level of the country but as well the interaction with other countries. This has been proved beneficial for the control of these diseases due to the increase in the cultural level in the population.

Biography :

Maria Jose Alulema is a second year student of medicine. She is part of the Red Cross, association of students of medicine in Latin America and she is doing other volunteering work. She has a poster accepted in a welcome trust conference in Cambridge and one paper review in a nutrition Cuban journal.