Application of optimal control to the epidemiology of malaria

Abstract

Malaria is a deadly disease transmitted to humans through the bite of infected female mosquitoes. In this paper a deterministic system of differential equations is presented and studied for the transmission of malaria. Then optimal control theory is applied to investigate optimal strategies for controlling the spread of malaria disease using treatment, insecticide treated bed nets and spray of mosquito insecticide as the system control variables. The possible impact of using combinations of the three controls either one at a time or two at a time on the spread of the disease is also examined.