A 46-year-old fisherman from the Naranjo area of Alajuela tested positive for laboratory tests that confirm the case of malaria.
According to Dr. Luis Diego Alfaro, director of the San Francisco de Asís hospital in Grecia, the man entered the medical center last Saturday with the typical symptoms of the disease.
The patient is a fisherman and works in Puntarenas and was traveling during Holy Week in Guanacaste, Puntarenas and San Carlos. On Saturday, he comes in for follow-up tests for dengue but we identified a case of malaria,”
said Alfaro.
The director also assured that it is an isolated case in Grecia because there is no means of contact and no other source can be identified.
Malaria is transmitted through a bite of the mosquito Anopheles, which transmits a parasite called Plasmodium to people. Affected people have intermittent fever, chills, sweating and headaches and muscle pain. Last year ended with 12 local cases of malaria and nine imported cases.