Ecuador health ministry confirms malaria outbreak in Amazon jungle provinces

Ecuador’s Ministry of Public Health says that more than 100 cases of malaria have been confirmed in Zamora Chinchipe, Morona Santiago and Pastaza Provinces in the country’s Amazon region.

The malaria-carrying Anopheles mosquito.

The ministry says it is working with health officials in Peru to control the outbreak. The three provinces where malaria cases have been reported border Peru. “This is a bi-national outbreak and all our efforts to control it must be coordinated with Peru,” said Ecuador health minister Margarita Guevara.

The ministry is warning residents and visitors to the area to take precautions to avoid contracting the disease, including using mosquito nets for sleeping, applying insecticides to dwellings, and using insect repellent during the day.

Malaria is spread by the female Anopheles mosquito and can be contracted at elevations below 6,000 feet in Ecuador.