What is the Problem?
Pregnant women are particularly vulnerable to malaria as pregnancy reduces a woman’s immunity, making her more susceptible to malaria infection, and increasing her risk of illness, severe anemia and death. For the unborn child, maternal malaria increases the risk of spontaneous abortion, stillbirth, premature delivery and low birth weight, a leading cause of child mortality.

In sub-Saharan Africa, the world’s hardest hit region, malaria infection is estimated to cause 400,000 cases of severe maternal anemia and 75,000-200,000 infant deaths annually. Maternal anemia contributes significantly to maternal mortality and causes an estimated 10,000 deaths per year.

Low birth weight is the greatest risk factor for neonatal mortality and a major contributor to infant mortality. Although many factors contribute to low birth weight, malaria is a major factor and one of the few—along with poor nutrition, anemia, and other infections—that is amenable to intervention once a woman becomes pregnant.