If anybody develops a fever within one year of travelling abroad, they should get themselves tested for malaria by contacting the 24x7 hotline 0112626626. Diagnosis, medical tests and drugs are available free only in the state health sector, Anti Malaria Campaign Director Dr. Prasad Ranaweera said.
He told a press briefing at the Health Promotion Bureau in Colombo on Friday that when contact is made through the hotline, arrangements will be made to test the blood of the person concerned within one or two hours. If found positive, free medical treatment will be provided. Medical treatment and drugs are not available in the private sector and only available in the state sector. They are also very expensive.
After treating and curing the patient, he or she will be monitored for one year because the parasite which causes malaria hides inside the body and can be reactivated within a year, he said.
One undetected malaria patient can infect thousands of other healthy people within a short period. There has been a drastic increase in imported cases of malaria and 16 cases have been reported during the past four months, he added.