FINAL year medical student Nwe-Ni came hurriedly with a lot of orchid flowers and with books in armpit. “Auntie, I have been studying malaria. Malaria has given a lot of troubles to infants and their mothers. Female Anopheles suck blood from people during TV time and sleeping time and during worshipping and meditation of the elders.” “ Yes, please go on, my niece.”
The aunt and niece keep sitting on a white bench in a flower garden. Because of malaria, the death rate of infants and babies under the age of one becomes higher due to immunodeficiency. Malaria is more infectious among malnourished pregnant mothers. “ Yes, my niece.” I while working as a child expert, encountered a lot of experience concerning with malaria such as thin and anemic children and loss of lives due to malaria-infected brains. Children suffering from malaria tend to have fits of delirium, diarrhea and stomach aches. Then they happen to excrete black urine. “ Ant, what kind of malaria falls on pregnant women?” “They happen to supper from a penetrating chill with high temperature. Shaking with fever on alternate days. Anemic and weak with yellow eyes and loss of consciousness, births with underweighted babies and abortion.” “ How about malaria spreading in hilly regions, forested areas and plain?” “ My niece, malaria is an infectious disease. It spreads among mountainous regions. Due to modernization, trading purposes from a village to a village and town to town, you have to prevent female anopheles mosquitoes for not infecting from one to another. “ Yes, Auntie!” It is important to prevent female anopheles from biting.” “ Yes, my niece”. Malaria spreads from one person to another due to the bites by Anopheles mosquitoes. Not bathing and drinking water from streams and eating bananas could cause malaria; these cases must be known to mothers and pregnant mothers.
New-Ni grasped with her hands some beans and paddy seeds from the empty condensed milk can which is put on a bench and throw them to feed pigeons and doves. The two get fresh with sweet smells from flowering plants in the garden. Prevention and suppression of malaria is important; suppression of larvae must be carried out by cutting grass and bushes and piling earth on potholes. Water should be channeled by cleaning water tanks and glazed earthen jars. By keeping environment clean means not breeding mosquitoes. At the same time, you have to sleep in the mosquito nets and coils lighting ; a lot of smoke must be billowed at night. If you have to go to the malaria-infested areas, you have to take a drug of chloroquine; living in these areas you have the drug weekly. Even after returning from these areas, you will have to take chloroquine for weeks. During pregnancy, the prevention is prescribed as chloroquine; New-Ni said chloroquine tablets are available from health officials. “ Yes, Ant,” we have to live by means of self-prevention from malaria.
All people should understand malaria should be prevented from contracting from one person to another person. Female anopheles suck blood from infected people, then transmit the parasites by piercing skin like a syringe; that is why during transfusion, it is important not to give injections which neither AIDS or malaria-infected blood is put into the body. “ Yes, niece,” especially when female Anopheles mosquitoes are looking for food at dusk and when you go out at dawn, you must get dressed by means of careful protection from mosquito bites. This sort of knowledge must be distributed to the women in general, especially among pregnant mothers in the ways of lectures and trainings so that all people could have collective knowledge. Having knowledgeable understanding of collective prevention could reduce the death rate of mothers and infants. Healthy mother could give birth to healthy babies so that next generation of physically and mentally developed people could be beneficial for the sustainable development of our country.
“ Yes, Aunt,” what you said is really right. I wish I could never become an anopheles mosquito which keeps giving troubles to people in general. Have a look, Aunt. Healthy and nourished doves are seen enjoying their ways of life. I also become hungry and eat oranges from inside our home. My niece comes into our home hurriedly and happily and makes me wish Nwe-Ni to become an affectionate medical doctor for our country. (Translated by Arakan Sein)
