Babesiosis and Malaria in the United States: Epidemiology, Research Funding, Medical Progress, & Recommendations for Improvement
In the US from 2018-22, there were more babesiosis cases and deaths than malaria. Decades of robust CDC and NIH funding for malaria led to its elimination from the US, improved medical knowledge and interventions, and reduced foreign morbidity and mortality. These data suggest that leveraging similar approaches used for malaria, including increased NIH and CDC funding for babesiosis, would likely lead to progress (e.g., improved treatment). Babesiosis qualifies as both a rare and an orphan disease.
Authors
- Sean R. Stowell (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1130-9551)
- Ryan Philip Jajosky (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8458-7635)
- Philip G. Jajosky (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1034-0127)
- Audrey N. Jajosky (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8265-2496)
- Wenhui Li (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1305-7404)
Institutions
- Brigham and Women's Hospital (US)
- Harvard University (US)
- University of Rochester Medical Center (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Epidemiologia
- Published
- 2025-11-06
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3390/epidemiologia6040076
- Primary Topic
- Vector-borne infectious diseases
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- National Institutes of Health
- National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute