Urban malaria transmission in a non-endemic area in the Andean region of Colombia

BACKGROUND Rapid urbanisation in difficult socio-economic conditions such as inadequate housing infrastructure, lack of public services, improper sanitation, and poor water drainage systems in vegetation-rich areas lead to ecological conditions that are conducive to the breeding of mosquitoes and transmission of malaria, in semi-urban and urban settings. OBJECTIVES This study aimed to describe the cases of malaria that were reported in the peri-urban areas of Pereira (Colombia), between 2008 and 2015. METHODS A retrospective study was conducted using data from the Malaria Surveillance System 2009-2015 and an outbreak study (between December 2008 and March 2009). Frequency distributions and summary measures, as well as univariate analysis were performed for all the variables in consideration. The annual parasite index (API) was calculated. FINDINGS Data on 214 cases were obtained from the surveillance system. A majority of the cases were reported in men (63.1%), followed by in children