A Medical Officer at the International Maritime Hospital at Tema, Dr. Mrs Dorothy Hanson, says drinking herbal medicines does not kill malaria parasites but only treats the symptoms.
She said no matter the quantity of herbal concoctions patients consume, that will not clear the parasites from their system, and that most of those who relied on herbal medications always ended up in the hospital for treatment.
This is because the parasites remained in their bodies even after they thought they had finished the treatment.
Speaking at a health communication platform in Tema, Dr. Hanson said some species of the malaria parasite, especially the plasmodium, could remain in the body for years without causing sickness.
Explaining the transmission process, she said when an infected female Anopheles mosquito bites a person, it injects the parasites into the bloodstream, which subsequently travel to the liver, where they stay and mature, after which they leave and infect the red blood cells, causing symptoms such as fever.
She, therefore, encouraged the public to seek the right treatment for malaria to avoid relapses, which could be severe and lead to health issues including kidney failure, liver problems, anaemia, defects in babies, and miscarriages. Dr. Mrs Hanson also encouraged people to test for the parasites before starting any treatment, as other illnesses might have the same symptoms.
Source: GNA
