{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,18]],"date-time":"2026-08-18T16:40:08Z","timestamp":1787071208870,"version":"build-2736575974"},"reference-count":41,"publisher":"Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health)","issue":"2","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,7,1]],"date-time":"2025-07-01T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1751328000000},"content-version":"unspecified","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/4.0"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["lww.com","ovid.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":[],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2025,7]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>Blood parasitic diseases remain a significant public health challenge in India, with malaria, lymphatic filariasis (LF), and visceral leishmaniasis (kala-azar) accounting for the highest disease burden among parasitic infections. India contributes a major share of the global burden, particularly for LF and kala-azar, and remains one of the few countries endemic for all three major blood parasites. These diseases remain endemic in several regions, particularly among marginalized and tribal populations. The complex epidemiology is compounded by asymptomatic carriers, atypical clinical manifestations, and coinfections, often leading to delayed diagnosis and incomplete treatment coverage. In addition, geographic inaccessibility, socio-economic deprivation, poor health-seeking behavior, and limited infrastructure further hinder elimination efforts. However, recent advances in molecular diagnostic methods and treatment strategies have opened a new window for precise detection and surveillance. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the current epidemiology, emerging challenges, and recent scientific and technological advances in the control and elimination of blood parasitic diseases in India. It emphasizes the critical need for a multisectoral, evidence-based approach, combining innovative tools, community engagement, and health system strengthening to achieve long-term, sustainable elimination.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.4103\/tp.tp_32_25","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,25]],"date-time":"2025-10-25T19:00:17Z","timestamp":1761418817000},"page":"81-90","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1097\/lww.0000000000001000","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Blood parasitic diseases in India: Current landscape, challenges, and the road ahead"],"prefix":"10.4103","volume":"15","author":[{"given":"Nonika","family":"Rajkumari","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Microbiology, AIIMS, Kalyani, West Bengal, India"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Diptanu","family":"Majumder","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Microbiology, AIIMS, Kalyani, West Bengal, India"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"276","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,25]]},"reference":[{"key":"R1-20260420","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"69","DOI":"10.4269\/ajtmh.2007.77.69","article-title":"Burden of malaria in India: Retrospective and prospective view","volume":"77","author":"Kumar","year":"2007","journal-title":"Am J Trop Med Hyg"},{"key":"R2-20260420","first-page":"1","article-title":"Malaria elimination in India \u2013 The way forward","volume":"57","author":"Rahi","year":"2020","journal-title":"J Vector Borne Dis"},{"key":"R3-20260420","first-page":"98","article-title":"Recent developments and future prospects in the treatment of visceral leishmaniasis","volume":"5","author":"Sundar","year":"2018","journal-title":"Ther Adv Infect Dis"},{"key":"R5-20260420","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"165","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijpara.2018.11.007","article-title":"Human babesiosis","volume":"49","author":"Krause","year":"2019","journal-title":"Int J Parasitol"},{"key":"R6-20260420","first-page":"1037","article-title":"Impact of climate change on vector-borne diseases in India","volume":"117","author":"Kumar","year":"2019","journal-title":"Curr Sci"},{"key":"R8-20260420","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"322","DOI":"10.1016\/S0140-6736(19)31097-9","article-title":"Mapping the global prevalence, incidence, and mortality of Plasmodium falciparum, 2000\u201317: A spatial and temporal modelling study","volume":"394","author":"Weiss","year":"2019","journal-title":"Lancet"},{"key":"R9-20260420","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"267","DOI":"10.1016\/j.actatropica.2011.11.008","article-title":"Malaria in India: The center for the study of complex malaria in India","volume":"121","author":"Das","year":"2012","journal-title":"Acta Trop"},{"key":"R10-20260420","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"83","DOI":"10.1016\/j.pt.2015.01.006","article-title":"The distinctive Features of Indian malaria parasites","volume":"31","author":"Das","year":"2015","journal-title":"Trends Parasitol"},{"key":"R12-20260420","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"339","DOI":"10.1186\/s12936-020-03402-6","article-title":"Demonstration of indigenous malaria elimination through track-test-treat-track (T4) strategy in a malaria elimination demonstration project in Mandla, Madhya Pradesh","volume":"19","author":"Bharti","year":"2020","journal-title":"Malar J"},{"key":"R13-20260420","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e0193046","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0193046","article-title":"Malaria diagnosis by PCR revealed differential distribution of mono and mixed species infections by Plasmodium falciparum and P. vivax in India","volume":"13","author":"Siwal","year":"2018","journal-title":"PLoS One"},{"key":"R14-20260420","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"100190","DOI":"10.1016\/j.onehlt.2020.100190","article-title":"Trends of neglected Plasmodium species infection in humans over the past century in India","volume":"11","author":"Chaturvedi","year":"2021","journal-title":"One Health"},{"key":"R17-20260420","article-title":"Lymphatic filariasis (LF) Elimination: What is the current situation? 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