Hong Kong reports more than 30 imported malaria cases, but health officials tell public not to worry about local transmission

Hong Kong has identified more than 30 additional imported cases of malaria in one day from a northwestern African country, raising concerns about an increasing strain on public hospitals, but health officials have told residents not to worry about local transmission as the disease is carried by infected mosquitoes.

The Hospital Authority on Saturday said there were currently 58 patients hospitalised for the disease, including 56 males and two females aged between 25 and 56. One patient was critically ill in intensive care, while two were in serious condition. Two people have died from the illness.

Among the 58 cases, more than 30 were identified among 210 arrivals from Guinea screened by health authorities with blood tests and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests on Friday, a day after the government announced a total of 30 imported cases had been reported between July 1 to Thursday.

Despite the rising figures, Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan, the head of the Centre for Health Protection’s communicable diseases branch, said there was no need for residents to be too worried about the disease.

Official data showed that the city logged a total of six malaria cases during the first six months of 2022, with an average of 20 patients being diagnosed with the illness each year in the past decade. According to the Department of Health, the last local malaria infection was reported in 1998, and the risk of local transmission was “extremely low”.

“Malaria is not directly transmitted from human to human through the air or the respiratory tract. [Infected female Anopheline] mosquitoes are the vector, but this type of mosquito has not been found in urban areas in Hong Kong in recent years,” Chuang said.

But even as Chuang sought to reassure the public over malaria risks, health authorities are taking a preventive approach.