Table 1 Malaria case surveillance strategies deployed in Sri Lanka
Case Surveillance strategy | Definition | Examples of populations tested | |
|---|---|---|---|
1. | Passive Case Detection (PCD) | Detection of malaria cases among people who seek health care on their own usually for fever. | Patients seeking health care in the public and private health sectors e.g. General Practitioners, at tertiary care hospitals, clinics, and even laboratories. |
2. | Reactive Case Detection (RACD) | Case surveillance conducted in response to an index case of malaria. | |
RACD travel-cohorts | Screening people who were exposed to the same risk of infection as the index case. i.e. travel contacts (identified through contact tracing) | Groups of pilgrims returning from India, the middle east; Gem traders, fisherman returning from Africa; Refugees from an endemic country. | |
RACD spatial-cohorts (in neighbouring households*) | Screening people (resident non-travellers) who might have contracted the disease from the same source as the index cases (if it is an indigenous or introduced case) or be at risk of contracting the disease from the index case. | Individuals resident in households within 1 km radius of the residence of the index case. | |
3. | Proactive Case Detection (PACD) | Screening high risk population unrelated to an index case of malaria. | |
PACD travel-cohorts | Travellers from a malaria endemic country with shared characteristics, unrelated to an index case. | Members of a group of military personnel returning from a UN Peacekeeping Mission in a malarious country; a group of post-war refugee returnees from India; Gem trader communities who frequently travel to Africa | |
PACD spatial-cohorts | Population groups, either Sri Lankan nationals or foreigners from an endemic country who are resident in Sri Lanka in previously malarious and highly receptive areas (i.e. having a high prevalence of the principle vector An.culicifacies). | Populations living in previously endemic areas without a history of recent travel; Groups of foreign labour from malaria endemic countries temporarily resident in receptive areas; Refugees from malaria endemic countries | |