Muhammad KaryanaLenny BurdarmShunmay YeungEnny KenangalemNoah WarikerRilia MaristelaKetut Gde UmanaRam VemuriMaurits J. OkoserayPasi M. PenttinenPeter EbsworthPaulus SugiartoNicholas M. AnsteyEmiliana TjitraRichard N. PriceBadan Penelitian Dan Pengembangan Kesehatan, Kementerian Kesehatan Republik IndonesiaDistrict Health AuthorityMahidol UniversityPublic Health Malaria ControlCharles Darwin UniversityMitra Masyarakat Hospital, IndonesiaMenzies School of Health ResearchChurchill Hospital2018-07-122018-07-122008-08-28Malaria Journal. Vol.7, (2008)147528752-s2.0-50049092433https://repository.li.mahidol.ac.th/handle/20.500.14594/19300Background. Multidrug resistance has emerged to both Plasmodium vivax and Plasmodium falciparum and yet the comparative epidemiology of these infections is poorly defined. Methods. All laboratory-confirmed episodes of malaria in Timika, Papua, Indonesia, presenting to community primary care clinics and an inpatient facility were reviewed over a two-year period. In addition information was gathered from a house-to-house survey to quantify the prevalence of malaria and treatment-seeking behaviour of people with fever. Results. Between January 2004 and December 2005, 99,158 laboratory-confirmed episodes of malaria were reported, of which 58% (57,938) were attributable to P. falciparum and 37% (36,471) to P. vivax. Malaria was most likely to be attributable to pure P. vivax in children under one year of age (55% 2,684/4,889). In the household survey, the prevalence of asexual parasitaemia was 7.5% (290/3,890) for P. falciparum and 6.4% (248/3,890) for P. vivax. The prevalence of P. falciparum infection peaked in young adults aged 15-25 years (9.8% 69/707), compared to P. vivax infection which peaked in children aged 1 to 4 years (9.5% 61/642). Overall 35% (1,813/5,255) of people questioned reported a febrile episode in the preceding month. Of the 60% of people who were estimated to have had malaria, only 39% would have been detected by the surveillance network. The overall incidence of malaria was therefore estimated as 876 per 1,000 per year (Range: 711-906). Conclusion. In this region of multidrug-resistant P. vivax and P. falciparum, both species are associated with substantial morbidity, but with significant differences in the age-related risk of infection. © 2008 Karyana et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.Mahidol UniversityImmunology and MicrobiologyMedicineArticleSCOPUS10.1186/1475-2875-7-148