Turkmenistan

The transmission of autochthonous malaria was interrupted in 2005 and the country was certified malaria-free in October 2010. Although endemic malaria was eradicated in Turkmenistan in 1960, sporadic cases have occasionally been reported. Some may have resulted from mosquitoes' flying in from neighbouring Afghanistan.

Background

An outbreak occurred in 1998, when 115 cases were recorded in an area along the border with Afghanistan and Turkmenistan. Thanks to the timely application of epidemic control measures, such as chemoprophylaxis and indoor residual spraying, the number of cases dropped significantly, and only 10 cases were reported by the following year.

Sporadic cases of autochthonous malaria are reported every year, and 44 local cases were registered in the country in 2000–2003. The last autochthonous case of P.vivax was reported in 2004. Since 2005, no cases of autochthonous P. vivax malaria have been reported in the country. 3 principal malaria vectors are found in Turkmenistan: Anopehles superpictus, An. pulcherimus and An. maculipennis.