Malaria is spread through mosquitoes that carry the disease. In the United States, the swamps and marshes that housed malaria-carrying mosquitoes were destroyed to eradicate the disease, a trick that worked well. However, this is not a tactic that will work worldwide, especially in hot and humid places where the majority of the landscape is marshland.

In places like these, a promising solution has been created: long-lasting, insecticide-treated nets (LLINs). An insecticide-treated net is a bed net that has been treated with safe, residual insecticide to kill and repel the infected mosquitoes while also physically blocking them out. LLINs are designed to remain effective for multiple years without needing to retreat.

Malaria kills about 660,000 people a year, most being children. LLINs are cost-effective in production and distribution and are considered to be one of the most cost-effective ways to save lives. The process of distribution is simple and thorough: survey the people to determine the need for the nets, deliver the LLINs, and then promote their use.

In the 2012 World Malaria Report that looked at 17 sub-Saharan African countries determined that 68-84 percent of people that owned the nets were using them, an increase since 2010. Along with this increase came fewer malaria-related deaths; however, the exact figures collected were fairly unreliable.

However, with a long-term solution at hand, scientists can focus on eradicating the disease entirely. In the Southern U.S. and Europe, where malaria has been eradicated, a big factor in defeating the disease was a change in human behavior, a shift in land use, and in housing. Scientists believe that more research is needed to understand the factors affecting transmission before the disease will be fully eradicated.

There is a long way to go before malaria is gone for good, but the long-lasting, insecticide-treated nets have proven to be successful in the lives of individuals. They are cost-effective and well-used. Eradication of malaria is within the foreseeable future.

– Hannah Resnick

Sources: Give Well, TDR
Photo: Fast Coexist