The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a new single-dose treatment to prevent relapses of one of the most dominant types of malaria.
The new drug, Krintafel, targets only the type of malaria parasite P. vivax, mainly present in South America and Southeast Asia, with about 8.5 million infections per year. Most cases of malaria and death occur in Africa and involve another species.
Read more: The deadly bite of mosquitoes
The British pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and Swiss Medicines for Malaria Venture are developing the drug.
In the tests, a dose of Krintafel had about the same effect as two weeks of standard treatment, preventing relapses in about three quarters of patients over six months, the company said.
Malaria is caused by parasites that spread to humans through mosquito bites. The initial infection can be cured with antimalarial drugs but the parasites can enter the liver and remain dormant, which can cause recurrences months or years later. A second medication is used to stop relapses.
& # 40; A milestone & # 39;
Dr. Hal Barron, Scientific Director and President of Research and Development at GSK, said: "The approval of Krintafel, the first new treatment for Plasmodium vivax malaria for more than 60 years, is a milestone for people affected by this type of recurrent malaria. "
The drug has been approved for patients aged 16 years and over who are receiving appropriate antimalarial treatment for acute P. vivax infection and this is the first new treatment for this type of malaria for more than a year. 60 years old, said GlaxoSmithKline. Read more: Info-film: Our Health and Climate Change
The company will soon apply for homologation in Brazil and then in In other countries where the type of malaria is common, he says he will sell cheap pills in low-income countries.
Malaria infects more than 200 million people worldwide. year and kill about half a million, most of whom are African children.It causes fever, headaches, chills and other flu-like symptoms.
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Sharks and scorpions – the world's deadliest animals are not what you thought
11. Sharks / Wolves
People killed every year: a dozen. Sharks and wolves scare a lot of people. And there is no doubt that wolves and some species of sharks can kill you. But very few of them actually do it. Every year, there are only about ten deaths caused by one or the other species around the world. You have a greater chance of being killed by your toaster.
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Sharks and scorpions? The deadliest animals in the world are not what you thought
10. Lions / Elephants
People killed every year: about 100. That you could be killed by a lion does not seem far-fetched and this happens. Perhaps more surprising is that your chances of falling victim to an elephant are just as high. The largest land animal in the world can be very aggressive and once it becomes enraged, it certainly has the mass and strength to be dangerous.
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Sharks and scorpions? The world's deadliest animals are not what you thought
9. Hippopotamus
People killed every year: about 500. There are countless children's toys in the form of hippopotamuses and why there would not be any? They look cute with their puffy noses and stubby builds. And they are herbivores. But do not let that fool you. They are territorial and very aggressive and do not need provocation to come after you, so avoid if you can
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Sharks and scorpions? The most deadly animals in the world are not what you thought
8. Crocodiles
People killed every year: about 1,000. Many people are probably as scared of crocodiles as sharks or lions and rightly so. Crocodiles are carnivores and kill sometimes larger prey than themselves, including small hippopotamuses, water buffaloes and, in the case of saltwater crocodiles, even sharks
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Sharks and scorpions? The world's deadliest animals are not what you thought
7. Tapeworms
People killed each year: around 2000. Tapeworms are parasitic flat worms that live in the digestive tracts of all kinds of vertebrates ranging from whales to mice, and humans as well. They usually find their way into our bodies in the form of eggs or larvae through contaminated food. The infection can be treated with drugs but parasites still kill 200 times more people than sharks
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Sharks and scorpions? The deadliest animals in the world are not what you thought
6. Ascaris ascaris
People killed each year: about 2500. The roundworms are another parasite contracted in the same way as the tapeworms. But they do not stay in the intestinal tract. Once the eggs hatch, they dig through the intestinal wall, travel to the lungs, ascend the trachea, are coughed and swallowed again to return to the intestine where they become adults. Ascariasis affects about 1 billion people worldwide.
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Sharks and scorpions? The world's deadliest animals are not what you thought
5. Freshwater snail (schistosomiasis) / Assasin bug (Chagas disease) / Tsetse fly (sleeping sickness)
People killed each year: about 10,000. Tied to fifth place are three killers with a death toll of 10,000 each. Although to be fair, it's not the animals that are the killers here, but the pests that they carry. Schistosomiasis can be contracted by contaminated water, Chagas disease and sleeping sickness by insect bites. So be sure to bring an insect repellent when you visit the affected areas.
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Sharks and scorpions? The most deadly animals in the world are not what you thought
4. Dog (rabies)
People killed each year: about 25,000. Rabies is a viral infection that can be contracted by many different animals, but in countries where rabies is common in dogs, humans do not get it. 99% of the time. And the rage is sneaky. It can take months for the symptoms to manifest and when they do, the disease is almost always fatal. The good news is that both dogs and humans can be vaccinated.
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Sharks and scorpions? The most deadly animals in the world are not what you thought
3. Snakes
People killed each year: about 50,000. Yes: If in doubt, avoid snakes. Many species are not deadly, some are not venomous but there are enough deadly snakes to make these reptiles the third greatest killer in the world.
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Sharks and scorpions? The world's deadliest animals are not what you thought
2. Humans
People killed each year: about 475,000. Yes, we made the list, too. After all, we are incredibly creative when it comes to finding ways to kill each other. This makes us the sad honor of second place among the murderers of man
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Sharks and scorpions? The deadliest animals in the world are not what you thought
1. Mosquitos
People killed each year: about 725 000. In places like Germany, they are only a nuisance, elsewhere they can be warning signs of death. And again, it is the diseases they carry, not the animals themselves that kill. Malaria alone kills an estimated 600,000 people a year. Dengue fever, yellow fever and encephalitis are also transmitted by mosquitoes, making tiny insects the world's biggest killers.
