The economic burden of malaria in Africa: a systematic review of cost of illness studies.

Background: The burden of malaria is lower than ten years ago. However, in the last few years, there has been an increase in the number of malaria cases around the world. a systematic review of studies on the cost of malaria were conducted to understand its economic burden to the health system, the household, and the society as whole.

Methods: Published articles on the cost of malaria in Africa from 2000 to 2024 were included to this review. Cochrane library, PubMed, and google scholar were searched to access the included articles and the results of the studies were described using text, tables, and diagram. The costs of malaria were presented using minimum and maximum values.

Results: The total treatment cost for simple (uncomplicated) malaria per case ranged from USD 4.03 to USD 31.23 and for the severe malaria, it ranged from USD 10.48 to USD 70.86. The maximum preventive cost for insecticide-treated bed nets distribution per unit ITN, larvicide per individual, and indoor residual spraying per a single use was about USD 10.81, USD 28.43, and USD 18.55, respectively.

Conclusion: The cost variability across studies and/or countries might be accounted for either the use of different costing methods, spatial variation, or the population considered while estimating the cost for malaria. To synthesise the cost data using meta-analysis, studies on the COI required to follow uniform costing methods and considering the discount rates while calculating health service costs. It can also facilitate meaningful comparison of cost estimates and to apply the results for evidence-based practices. This review protocol was registered and approved by the international prospective register of systematic reviews with a Protocol ID: CRD42024563063.