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| | {{comic | | {{comic |
| | | number = 51 | | | number = 51 |
| − | | date = January 18, 2006 <!-- The comic was released three days earlier on xkcd.com than on LiveJournal (21/1 2006). We use the earliest possible day--> | + | | date = January 21, 2006 |
| | | title = Malaria | | | title = Malaria |
| − | | before = <big><big><span class="plainlinks">[https://web.archive.org/web/20060529063441/http://xkcd-drawings.livejournal.com/#:~:text=1%3A43%20am-,Malaria,-Current%20Mood%3A LiveJournal title</span>]: '''Malaria'''</big></big>
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| | | image = malaria.jpg | | | image = malaria.jpg |
| − | | titletext = The malaria party was David's idea.<br><br><span class="plainlinks">[https://web.archive.org/web/20060529063441/http://xkcd-drawings.livejournal.com/#:~:text=1%3A43%20am-,Malaria,-Current%20Mood%3A LiveJournal caption</span>]: <small>'''Current Mood:''' ''Credit to David for this one''</small> | + | | titletext = The malaria party was David's idea. |
| | }} | | }} |
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| | ==Explanation== | | ==Explanation== |
| − | This was the forty-nineth comic originally posted to [[LiveJournal]]. The previous one was [[54: Science]], and the next one was [[52: Secret Worlds]]. It was among the [[:Category:Posted on LiveJournal after xkcd.com|last eleven comics]] posted both on LiveJournal and on [https://xkcd.com xkcd.com] after the new site was launched. This comic wasn't published on the same day across both sites, but most of them shared the same posting day. It was released on LiveJournal on January 21, 2006, three days after originally being posted on [https://xkcd.com xkcd.com]. See the [[#Trivia|trivia section]] below.
| + | In this comic we see four [[Cueball]]-like children in party hats with a balloon lying on the ground. (The third child could look a little like [[Megan]], but is is just the string for the party hat that creates the effect of him having hair). As it says their malaria party did no turn out to be fun. |
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| − | This comic humorously considers {{w|pox parties}} as a means of preventing malaria. During these "parties", adults gather their children to deliberately expose them to a communicable disease in order to promote {{w|Immunity (medical)|immunity}}. These parties are based on the fact humans can develop an {{w|adaptive immune response}} after being infected by a communicable disease by producing {{w|antibodies}} that will recognize future infections of the pathogen. For some illnesses, such as {{w|chickenpox}}, this response is particularly effective in reducing the seriousness of future infections in individuals with healthy immune systems. Furthermore, some illnesses, including chickenpox, are also thought to be less severe when the initial infection occurs in childhood, rather than adulthood. So, even though vaccinations remain a safer and more effective means of preventing severe disease, pox-parties may be held under the assumption that children will benefit from contracting an illness (and developing antibodies against it) while they are still young and the disease will be, in theory, less severe. Moreover, because transmission is planned/expected (at least for the 'guests'), those concerned may ''feel'' that they are more prepared to watch for and deal with the illness than if infection had occured during some unpredictable future occasion.
| + | {{w|Malaria}} is a {{w|Mosquito-borne disease}} of humans and other animals caused by {{w|protists}} (a type of microorganism) of the genus ''{{w|Plasmodium}}''. It begins with a bite from an infected female {{w|mosquito}}, which introduces the protists, via its saliva, into the circulatory system, and ultimately to the liver where they mature and reproduce. The disease causes symptoms that typically include fever and headache, which in severe cases can progress to coma or death. |
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| − | However, there are major differences between {{w|Poxviridae|poxes}} and {{w|Malaria|malaria}} that make the idea of a malaria party especially absurd:
| + | It plays on the idea of a {{w|pox party}} where adults bring their children to deliberately expose them to a virus to promote {{w|immunity}}. This is commonly done for a childhood disease like {{w|chickenpox}}. But for other child hood diseases this can now be replaced by {{w|vaccines}}. Some of these illnesses are more serious for adults than children. But after contracting chickenpox once (or any of the other childhood disease once), the {{w|immune system}} has developed {{w|antibodies}} for it and so is not vulnerable to the virus anymore the body has become immune (except in the case of {{w|shingles}}). |
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| − | # Unlike poxes, exposure to malaria does not necessarily reduce the risk or severity future infections. In fact, prior infections can actually increase the likelihood of getting malaria in the future. While poxes are caused by {{w|virus|viruses}}, malaria is caused by {{w|protists}} (a type of microorganism) of the ''{{w|Plasmodium}}'' genus. Malarial infection begins in humans when an infected mosquito bites them and introduces ''Plasmodium'' into the person's circulatory system via their saliva. At this point, ''Plasmodium'' will travel to the human's liver where they can mature and reproduce. After which, the pathogens typically return to the blood stream, where they can be picked up by a new mosquito vector. However, ''Plasmodium'' can also establish a dormant form in the liver, allowing malaria to reactivate years after symptoms have resolved and the blood infection has been cleared. Thus, having a malaria party would not be a useful exercise, as attending such a party would only increase the likelihood that an individual would suffer significant illness later on.
| + | However, malaria does not work this way, but instead once one has suffered from malaria, it can recur on its own even after apparent healing from symptoms. So having a malaria party would not promote immunity, but only make people sick and further vulnerable in the future. |
| − | # As mentioned above, malaria is a {{w|mosquito-borne disease}}. Unlike poxes, which can be transmitted between people directly, ''Plasmodium'' are transmitted indirectly through a mosquito vector. While mosquitos do not suffer malarial disease themselves, they can become infected by ''Plasmodium'' when they drink the blood of a human with an active infection. Over the course of a week, the ''Plasmodium'' will then travel from mid-gut of the mosquito to the salivary glands, where it can be introduced to a new human host when the mosquito takes another blood meal. Since it takes approximately seven days for a mosquito to become infectious, the malaria party would have to go on for at least a week to facilitate the transmission of malaria between party-goers. Furthermore, the party-goers would theoretically have to sit around in a room full of mosquitos to accomplish their goal, which also does not sound like 'very much fun.' It is possible that this is what is being represented by the black dots on the ground, which could be interpreted as confetti or the dead bodies of swatted mosquitos. Furthermore, the balloon may be pictured on the ground to indicate that enough time has passed for the helium in the balloon to be exchanged with normal air through diffusion (however, it is likely that, in reality, the balloon would be fully deflated if the party lasted for a full week).
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| − | Therefore, the humor of this comic comes from the fact that the party-goers did not anticipate that their plan would be an uncomfortable and ineffective means of transmitting malaria between them, let alone preventing it, under-scoring the absurdity of such a party.
| + | There has been allot of {{w|MMR vaccine controversy|controversy}} over the {{w|MMR vaccine}} which works against {{w|measles}}, {{w|mumps}} and {{w|rubella}}. Whereas the last two are only dangerous to adults, and only because they can affect the abilities to have children, measles are a very dangerous disease also for children. In the US between 1987 and 2000 there were a 0.3% risk of a {{w|Measles#Complications|fatal complication}}. It can be much worse in underdeveloped countries. The controversy was based on a claim in an article that was later completely {{w|Full retraction and fraud allegations|discredited}}. But this incidence has still caused many parents to keep their children out of this program. |
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| − | The title text blames [[David]] for the idea, while the original caption just seems to give him credit. He also mentioned David in [[42: Geico]] and [[100: Family Circus]].
| + | So now parents deliberately take their children to measles parties like the Malaria party here. And although they may become immune if they survive (as opposed to malaria) then there is still a serious risk of death or other complications. And because of this lack of vaccination the advantages of {{w|Herd immunity}} that would else protect infants, the weak and those with a poor immune system from catching these diseases. |
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| − | ===Vaccination===
| + | This may very well be [[Randall|Randall's]] way of showing what a "great idea" it is to expose your children (and thus also others) to potentially lethal diseases instead of taking the vaccine. |
| − | At the end of the 1990s, a study reported what would turn out to be made-up health threats from MMR-{{rw|vaccines}}, which created an {{w|MMR vaccine controversy}} and lower vaccination rates, even after they were exposed as false. This made {{w|pox parties}} more popular as the "natural alternative." However, even usually-"harmless" diseases like {{w|measles}} can (rarely) have complications and side-effects, up to and including death, which are by far more common and/or more severe than the actual health risks involved in vaccination. In the past 20 years, 2 Americans died from measles, both people with compromised immune systems. Also none, or late immunization, may create an immunization gap through which nearly extinct diseases can reenter a population (see e.g. {{w|Epidemiology of measles}}). If this gap can be closed (or made small enough), it is possible to make a disease extinct. This was actually successfully done with {{w|smallpox}}, and is now attempted with the {{w|poliovirus}} (Causing {{w|poliomyelitis}}, also known as infantile paralysis). A [[XKCD Marks the Spot|comic]] with poliovirus eradication as topic has been released.
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| | + | In the title text Randall attributes this idea to the unknown friend [[:Category:David|David]]. He did the same in [[42: Geico]] and [[100: Family Circus]]. He maybe wishes to wash his hands of this weird idea? |
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| | ==Transcript== | | ==Transcript== |
| − | :[Four Cueball-like children wearing party hats, a discarded balloon is lying to the right. There is text above:] | + | :[People wearing party hats, a discarded balloon to the side.] |
| − | :we had a malaria party | + | :We had a malaria party, but it turned out not to be very much fun. |
| − | :[And there is text below:]
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| − | :but it turned out not to be very much fun.
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| | ==Trivia== | | ==Trivia== |
| − | For unknown reasons, on January 18, 2006, [[54: Science]] was posted on LiveJournal on the same day that this comic was released on [https://xkcd.com xkcd.com]. Three days later, on January 21, 2006, this comic was posted on LiveJournal, thus forcing the next two comics ([[52: Secret Worlds]] and [[53: Hobby]]) to be released on [https://xkcd.com xkcd.com] two days before LiveJournal. Four days later, on January 25, 2006, [[54: Science]] was finally posted on [https://xkcd.com xkcd.com], which fixed the date discrepancies and allowed the next comic, [[55: Useless]], to be published on the same day across both sites.
| + | *This is the forty-ninth comic originally posted to livejournal. The previous comic was [[54: Science]], the next is [[52: Secret Worlds]]. |
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| | {{comic discussion}} | | {{comic discussion}} |
| − | | + | [[Category:Comics posted on livejournal| 49]] |
| − | [[Category:Posted on LiveJournal| 49]] | + | [[Category:Posted on LiveJournal after xkcd]] |
| − | [[Category:Posted on LiveJournal after xkcd.com]] | + | [[Category:David]] |
| − | [[Category:Comics featuring David]] | |
| − | [[Category:Characters with hats]]
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