Impact of Drug Pressure versus Limited Access to Drug in Malaria Control: The Dilemma

Abstract

Malaria burden has severe impact on the world. Several arsenals, including the use of antimalarials, are in place to curb the malaria burden. However, the application of these antimalarials has two extremes, limited access to drug and drug pressure, which may have similar impact on malaria control, leading to treatment failure through divergent mechanisms. Limited access to drugs ensures that patients do not get the right doses of the antimalarials in order to have an effective plasma concentration to kill the malaria parasites, which leads to treatment failure and overall reduction in malaria control via increased transmission rate. On the other hand, drug pressure can lead to the selection of drug resistance phenotypes in a subpopulation of the malaria parasites as they mutate in order to adapt. This also leads to a reduction in malaria control. Addressing these extremes in antimalarial application can be essential in maintaining the relevance of the conventional antimalarials in winning the war against malaria.