Malaria prevention during pregnancy

Nets, antenatal prevention and travel planning need a pregnancy-specific approach.

For: Pregnant people living in or travelling to malaria-transmission areas

General guidance across countries. Sources checked 2026-11-04.

Antenatal prevention

Use an insecticide-treated net and discuss local malaria prevention at antenatal visits. In eligible moderate-to-high transmission settings in Africa, preventive sulfadoxine–pyrimethamine during pregnancy (IPTp-SP) begins in the second trimester; doses are spaced at least a month apart, with a goal of at least three. The antenatal team checks eligibility and gives the appropriate regimen.

Travel and symptoms

If pregnant, discuss postponing travel to a malaria-risk area where possible. If travel is necessary, obtain a pregnancy-appropriate prevention plan; several common travel medicines are unsuitable. Fever in pregnancy needs prompt assessment, even with prevention.

Sources

  1. Malaria · Public sector health information · OGL v3.0
  2. CDC Yellow Book: malaria, bite prevention and returning travellers · CDC · Linked public-health reference; original AfyaMesh summary
  3. WHO: preventive malaria treatment in pregnancy · WHO · Linked public-health reference; original AfyaMesh summary

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

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