Despite continuing research on the epidemiology and control of malaria epidemics, little is known about the medical public health burden associated with these events. The data that are available indicate that epidemics can cause widespread morbidity and that epidemic-related risks of severe disease and death are relatively high across all age groups affected]. Moreover, little is known about the economic burden of epidemics, or the costs of interventions used for epidemic prevention and control. Without reliable information in this area policy makers are unable to make informed resource allocation decisions based on sound evidence. Malaria epidemics cause substantial morbidity and mortality in highland areas of Africa. The costs of detecting and controlling these epidemics have not been explored adequately in the past. This study presents the costs of establishing and running an early detection system (EDS) for epidemic malaria in four districts in the highlands of Kenya and Uganda. An economic costing was carried out from the health service provider's perspective in both countries. Staff time for data entry and processing, as well as supervising and coordinating EDS activities at district and national levels was recorded and associated opportunity costs estimated. A threshold analysis was carried out to determine the number of DALYs or deaths that would need to be averted in order for the EDS to be considered cost-effective.

 Dirk H Mueller, Tarekegn  Abeku 2009, 8:17 doi:10.1186/1475-2875-8-17