12.6.1  Epidemic control measures

Mass fever treatment

Once a malaria epidemic is detected and confirmed, treat all those people with fever without testing with RDTs. This is called mass fever treatment. Give Coartem to treat cases during mass fever treatment, unless the epidemic is definitely confirmed to be caused by P. vivax only, in which case you can use Chloroquine. Oral quinine is recommended for the treatment of infants of less than 5 kg body weight or less than four months old, and pregnant women with uncomplicated malaria (for dosage see Study Session 8). Severe cases should be treated as indicated in Study Session 8.

Vector control

Implement the following vector control measures immediately:

ITNs:  If ITN coverage is low or if existing ITNs are worn out, distribute ITNs and make sure that they are hung properly and used by all family members.

Indoor residual spraying of all houses (IRS): This has a quick impact on transmission. In an epidemic this technique is highly reliable and recommended since its efficacy has little or no dependency on human behaviour.

Larval control: This should be undertaken by mobilising and organising the community to take action.