Background: In Malawi, malaria is a leading cause of infant morbidity and mortality. Low birthweight and fetal anaemia are also a common occurrence. The relationship between birthweight and fetal anaemia and malaria morbidity in infancy is not known.

Objectives: To investigate the relationship between incidence of first malaria episode and birthweight and fetal anaemia and to investigate adherence of health workers to Integrated Management of Childhood Illnesses (IMCI) malaria treatment protocol.

Design: A stratified sample of 561 infants was selected based on low birth weight (LBW,