Malaria is the world's oldest recorded  disease, it is referred to in  old Chinese and Indian writings. It was one of the causes of the downfall of both the Greek and Roman empire.

recognized  that there must be some connections between malaria and swamps, and some believed that insects living near swamps might be the carrier  of the disease. The Romans drained the swamps and reduced the mosquito population. This was the best method  used for

         Not until 1632  did the Europeans find a successful treatment for the disease. The Spanish discoverers of the New World learned from the Indians of Peru that the bark of one of the trees growing there often often ended a patient's attack of malaria. In the nineteenth century, French scientists found that quinine was the substance in the bark that cured malaria. The Dutch planted quinine trees in the East Indies and, in time, established an almost complete control of the medicine made from  it. When the East Indies supply was cut off  

Today, most of the world uses these newer drugs.