The World Health Organization has approved the first malaria treatment specifically designed for newborns and very young infants, closing a decades-old gap in care that has left the most vulnerable patients reliant on crushed adult pills and imprecise dosing.
The newly approved drug, artemether-lumefantrine, is authorized for babies weighing between two and five kilograms— typically from birth to around three months of age, an age group that has long been overlooked in malaria care. Until now, health workers had no dedicated formulation for this age group. Infants with malaria were treated using crushed tablets or syrups intended for older children, methods that often resulted in underdosing or overdosing. Underdosing can lead to treatment failure and drug resistance; overdosing increases the risk of toxicity and side effects, including vomiting, diarrhea and neurological distress.
Announced on Friday, April 24, 2026, the approval signals that the treatment meets international standards for safety, quality and efficacy. It also paves the way for governments and global health agencies to procure and distribute the drug more widely, particularly across malaria-endemic regions.
The development is expected to address a critical treatment gap, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, where millions of infants are born each year in high-risk malaria zones. Health experts believe the tailored formulation will significantly improve survival rates among newborns, who are among the most vulnerable to severe malaria complications.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus described the approval as part of a broader momentum in malaria control. He highlighted ongoing advances in vaccines, diagnostics, mosquito control tools, and treatment innovations aimed at reducing the disease burden.
“For centuries, malaria has stolen children from their parents, and health, wealth and hope from communities,” he said, noting that recent scientific progress is helping to turn the tide against the disease.
In a parallel announcement that public health officials say is equally significant, WHO has approved three new rapid diagnostic tests designed to detect a form of the malaria parasite that is increasingly evading older testing methods.
The most widely used rapid tests today detect a protein called histidine-rich protein 2 (HRP2). This protein has been a reliable biomarker for Plasmodium falciparum, the deadliest malaria parasite species, for decades. However, in multiple countries, the parasite has evolved to delete the gene responsible for producing HRP2, rendering standard tests useless.
The problem is most advanced in the Horn of Africa. In Somalia, Ethiopia, Eritrea and Djibouti, studies have shown that HRP2-negative parasites now account for more than five percent of cases – and in some regions, exceed 40 percent. This has led to widespread underdiagnosis, with febrile patients testing negative for malaria despite being infected, receiving no treatment and in some cases, dying from complications.
The three newly approved tests detect an alternative protein: parasite lactate dehydrogenase (pf-LDH). Because this protein is essential to the parasite’s metabolism, scientists believe it is far less likely to be deleted or mutated. The new tests will not replace HRP2-based tests entirely, but WHO now advises countries to switch to pf-LDH tests if more than five percent of local malaria cases are being missed by current diagnostics.
Public health experts say the combined rollout of improved treatments and more reliable diagnostic tools marks a turning point in malaria response efforts. With sustained political will and investment, global health leaders believe the long-standing burden of malaria could finally be brought under control within a generation.
Source: The New Times
