Characterization of imported malaria, the largest threat to sustained malaria elimination from Sri Lanka

Priyani Dharmawardena, Risintha G Premaratne, WM Kumudunayana T de AW Gunasekera, Mihirini Hewawitarane, Kamini Mendis, Deepika Fernando

Sri Lanka has reached zero indigenous malaria cases in November 2012, two years before its targeted deadline for elimination. Currently, the biggest threat to the elimination efforts are the risk of resurgence of malaria due to imported cases. This paper describes two clusters of imported malaria infections reported in 2013 and 2014, one among a group of Pakistani asylum-seekers resident in Sri Lanka, and the other amongst local fishermen who returned from Sierra Leone. The two clusters studied reveal the potential impact of imported malaria on the risk of reintroducing the disease, as importation is the only source of malaria in the country at present. In the event of a case occurring, detection is a major challenge both amongst individuals returning from malaria endemic countries and the local population, as malaria is fast becoming a "forgotten" disease amongst health care providers. In spite of a very good coverage of diagnostic services (microscopy and rapid diagnostic tests) throughout the country, malaria is being repeatedly overlooked by health care providers even when individuals present with fever and a recent history of travel to a malaria endemic country. Given the high receptivity to malaria in previously endemic areas of the country due to the prevalence of the vector mosquito, such cases pose a significant threat for the reintroduction of malaria to Sri Lanka. The challenges faced by the Anti Malaria Campaign and measures taken to prevent the resurgence of malaria are discussed here.